


Because of You

by bellarkegriffin_blake



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Hurt Clarke Griffin, Love at First Sight, Minor Finn Collins/Clarke Griffin, Protective Bellamy, Slow Burn Bellamy Blake/Clarke Griffin, Triggers, abused Clarke, clarke tries to escape her past, finn is abusive, possibly smut??
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-26
Updated: 2019-07-10
Packaged: 2020-05-19 21:05:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19364107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bellarkegriffin_blake/pseuds/bellarkegriffin_blake
Summary: Bellamy helps move in his new neighbor, Clarke, and is immediately taken over by her beauty. All he wants is to get to know her in hopes of developing something more than friends, but there is something stopping her. She is always distancing herself from him. He takes one step forward, she takes two steps back. She seems to get along with him and his friends when he introduces her to them, but there is something deeper going on. When her ex-boyfriend shows up, he figures out what kind of past she had with him and he doesn't like it. He will do anything to get her away from him and help her through her trauma.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The title comes from Kelly Clarkson's song Because of You. It seemed fitting for how Clarke reacts to Bellamy and his friends when she meets them. Because of what Finn did to her, she is afraid to act the way she wants around them, so she bottles everything up. She pretends she is okay.

Bellamy is relaxing on his incredibly comfy couch watching a documentary about the Titanic when he hears a bunch of commotion outside his door. He tries to ignore it and turns the volume up, but nothing can cover up the loud voices outside. He gets up, throws a shirt over his naked chest and trods into the hallway. He finds the door across from him propped open and a beautiful blonde girl telling her friend where to set a box down. She has short hair and eyes as blue as the ocean. If he looks too long, he swears he could drown in them. He must have been staring because the next thing he knows, she is standing directly in front of him. 

“Can I help you?” she asks him. Dear God, her voice is music to his ears. 

“I, um, wanted to know if you needed any help?” he says sheepishly. Definitely not what he wanted to say. “It’s not every day I get a new neighbor to get to know. My name is Bellamy by the way.” 

“Thanks, but my friend Wells is here helping me.” 

“Actually, Clarke,” her friend, Wells, starts, “I need to be getting back home. It’s a long drive and I have to work tomorrow. But these are all the big things, right?” 

“Yeah! Thank you for helping me...” Her sentence doesn’t seem to have a definitive end, but Wells must know what she means because he gives her a huge hug and whispers something in her ear. Bellamy feels mildly awkward just standing in the middle of their moment, but he thinks she may want his help now. When Wells leaves, he sees her quickly wiping away a tear. 

“Are you okay?” he asks her. 

“I’m fine, I’m just a long way from home,” she tells him. He notices her choice of clothing, which is a long sleeve shirt and jeans. That is odd when it’s the middle of summer, but he doesn’t say anything about it. He has only known her for a few minutes. Who is he to judge? 

“Tell me what to do, Princess.” The nickname accidentally slips off his tongue and he receives a confused look from her. 

“Barely know me and you already have a nickname?” 

“Sorry. Clarke, right?” 

“Yeah. You can move those boxes,” she points to some in the corner of the living room, “to the counter by the fridge.” 

He does what she asks and a few more things. He knows it’s crazy, but he wants to get to know her. He wants to know things that nobody else knows. He decides to start small and asks her, “So where are you from, Clarke?” 

She seems to freeze for a split second but recollects herself quickly. “I’m from Polis.” 

“Wow. That is quite a bit away. What made you move from the capitol to the small city of Sanctum?” 

“Can you help me move this tv stand over to the corner?” she asks, deflecting Bellamy’s question. Throughout moving and unpacking her things, he observes that she always moves out of the way when he walks by. Not just a couple inches if that’s all that is necessary, but she moves across the entire room to avoid being by him. Maybe he is reading too much into their interaction? Maybe this is really just him helping her out? Bellamy likes to think they are becoming friends, but he doesn’t want to pressure her into it. 

“How about you? Have you lived in Sanctum for long?” she questions him. 

“Only a few years. I moved with my sister, Octavia, from Arkadia as soon as I could get us out of there. Our dad died a long time ago and our mom has been there, but not there, ever since. Octavia needed a change. One where she didn’t have to look at the sick shell of our mother every day.” 

Clarke stares at him for a few seconds before darting her eyes away. 

“Sorry. Too much information?” Of course, the first time they start talking about something other than the items in her apartment, he scares her away. 

“No, it’s just... I had kind of the same life. My dad died a couple years ago, and my mom seemed to have lost any ability to feel anything anymore.” 

Bellamy feels a spark ignite in him. Once again, he finds himself taking in her beauty. Only when she goes to arrange something on the newly positioned tv stand does he take his eyes off her. He has to invite her over to his place. 

“Hey, how would you feel about coming over tonight for a movie and some snacks?” 

She stops moving, if you can call trembling in place not moving. He is confused, but he hopes whatever is holding her back goes away. “Um... I should really stay here and finish things. Which it seems you did a lot of today, so thank you. Now all I have to do is arrange.” 

“Sure, of course. I will leave you to it, then.” Damn, he wanted her to come over. He is about the close her door when her hand stops it. 

“You know what? I will be there. Give me time to shower and change and I will be right over,” she says, breathless, as if it took her entire body to say that sentence. He doesn’t know what changed her mind, but he is eternally grateful for whatever it was. 

An hour later, a knock comes to his door. He gets up and answers it to find Clarke shyly grinning at him. She is still wearing long sleeves and pants, but she could be dressed in a snowsuit and he would still think she is the most beautiful person on the planet. He steps aside and lets her in. 

“Wow, your place looks amazing,” she tells him, and he can detect the faintest piece of sarcasm coming from her lips. 

He gives her a small, but meaningful, chuckle and replies, “Thanks. I bet you have never seen another apartment like it at all!” 

That gets her laughing now, too. “Nope! This apartment is as original as the remake of Stephen King‘s IT.” 

“You would think that even a cheap building like this would have some sort of variation between apartments. Someone could get drunk, stumble into another person’s room and totally think it was theirs. If they didn’t pay attention that closely.” 

The two of them go sit on the couch, and Bellamy takes note of how far away she sits down from him. There is only so much room on it, but she takes the very opposite side, almost sitting on the arm. 

“What would you like to watch?” he asks her. 

“Anything is fine with me.” 

“You say that now, but what would you say if I pulled up a documentary about World War I?” He does exactly this to see what reaction he would get. A groan of boredom? A pillow thrown at him to turn the damn channel? He doesn’t expect the reaction she gives him. 

“I would sit back and watch it because I think the things about our history are really important to know about. And it’s interesting,” Clarke says this and keeps watching the tv, but all Bellamy can do is look at her profile. No girl he has ever brought home, not that he is constantly bringing them here, has ever been interested in history. It’s always reality shows or some sort of drama. This is refreshing, he thinks, to have someone genuinely interested in something he is. 

He wants her to sit closer, to lean her head on his shoulder as the discuss what is going on in the show, but she stays put. He is about to ask her if he is doing something to make her uncomfortable, but another knock comes at the door instead. 

“Shit,” he grumbles and rests his head in his hands. He forgot that he was supposed to go out tonight. He gets up to answer the door when the knock becomes loud, persistent, and annoying. He opens the door and before he has it fully open, Murphy, Raven, Emori, and Octavia stroll through it. 

“What’s with the hold up, Blake? I thought-,“ he stops when his eyes land on Clarke. “Well, hello there. Who might you be?” 

“Clarke Griffin, nice to meet you.” 

Murphy turns to whisper in Bellamy’s ear, “Where did you find the incredibly hot chick?” 

Bellamy rolls his eyes and goes over to stand behind the couch but by Clarke. “Everyone, this is Clarke Griffin, as you probably heard. Clarke this is,” he points to everyone in turn, “Murphy, Emori, Raven, and Octavia.” 

“Octavia, your sister?” 

“Wow! She already knows me! Cool,” Octavia beams. 

“I should have guessed. You guys look so alike. Hello, everyone.” 

Now Raven speaks up, “Well, we were going to go out tonight, but you two look pretty comfortable watching...whatever you are watching. I guess we will go then.” 

“Why don’t you guys stay? I moved in across the hall and it would be nice to make some new friends.” Clarke sounds unsure of herself again but is composed enough to not sound that way to anyone she just met a couple minutes ago. 

“I thought you’d never ask,” Murphy says as he plops down on the couch next to Clarke. Bellamy watches her as she microscopically panics and gets up to move to the single person armchair next to the couch. He suddenly wishes they were alone again so he could ask her if there was anything wrong. He knows there is, but he wants to know so he could try and help her. On the other hand, he is also glad she is willing to fold into his group of friends. As far as he can tell, she is doing a great job of it. 

The six of them talk for hours. They talk about their pasts, where they came from, how they got to Sanctum, everything. It’s strange since they have only known Clarke less than a day, but so has he, so there isn‘t any room to judge. The strangest part, though, is Clarke is incredibly good at deflecting all the questions about herself. Instead, she asks the same question to someone else. He also notices the way she fiddles her thumbs together when she thinks hard about the rare question she does answer. 

Finally, at one in the morning, the party disperses. Clarke is the last one to leave, thankfully. The way she looks at him, he feels like she wants there to be something more than being only friends just as much as he does. The problem is when he gets close, she backs off. 

“That was a great movie and snacks, Bellamy,” she tells him. “Thanks for inviting me.” 

“It didn’t exactly turn out how I expected, but I’m glad you met my friends. They like you; I can tell.” He walks her out his door and across the hallway to hers. The desire he has to kiss her right now is beyond anything he has ever felt in his life. He can feel it taking over and starts to lean in, but stops when she, once again, leans back away from him. He instead whispers to her, “If you ever need to talk about anything, let me know. I mean it Clarke. Anything, anytime.” 

He doesn't expect that to bring tears to her eyes, but it does, and she thanks him and walks inside. When she is completely out of sight, he sighs and rests his head against her door for a moment. Eventually, he trudges into his bedroom, collapses on his bed, and says to himself, “Something is up with her, and I need to figure out what it is.” It only takes minutes for him to fall into a deep sleep. 

The next morning, Bellamy hits the snooze button one too many times. He won’t be late for work, but he doesn’t like being rushed. He makes a quick cup of coffee in his Keurig, gets dressed, grabs a banana, and is out the door in ten minutes. He is busy locking up when he hears a creak and the jingle of another set of keys from behind him. 

“Morning, Princess,” he greets, “Get a good night sleep?” 

“Better than I have in a long time.” 

“After everyone left, I had the urge to watch a mythology documentary, but I thought that was something you would want to see, too, so I am waiting. Maybe we could watch it together sometime? You know, without being interrupted?” 

Her eyes are locked into his and he feels a falling sensation. Whether he is falling into the bright blue of her eyes or falling for her altogether, he doesn‘t know. What he does know is he wants to be with her. Only her. They continue to talk all the way to their cars. They have only been apart for six hours, which were all spent sleeping, and they still have new things to talk about. 

This morning routine continues every day. They happen to leave at the exact same time, talk on the way to their cars, leave, and then see each other later. They don’t get home at the same time, but it’s not too far off. Bellamy finds himself looking forward to getting up in the morning for work just to talk to her for the five minutes before they go separate ways for the day. One morning, on their way out of the main building door, they both reach for the knob, and Bellamy feels his hand cover hers. He smiles thinking how he loves the feeling of her hand in his, but when he looks at her, he sees a totally different emotion. 

Clarke’s eyes are filled with horror. She pulls back her hand so fast Bellamy can feel the heat of the friction a few seconds after it’s gone. 

“I’m so sorry!” she exclaims. She sounds like she is afraid he is going to yell at her. 

“It’s okay, Clarke. We just reached for it at the same time. It’s no big deal.” Bellamy is truly confused why she reacted like that, but a possible cause resonates in his head. 

She sighs, with what seems like relief, and opens the door for real this time. Instead of waiting for him to be right behind her, like she usually does, she speeds to her car without another word. He doesn’t want to think that this was ever possible or that she had to go through this at some point, but he can’t think of another reason for her to be so defensive against anyone that gets close to her. 

_Was she abused by someone she loved?_


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bellamy and Clarke enjoy a day with each other and friends, but Clarke gets an unwanted visitor when she gets home.

“So, what I’m hearing is Gaia and Uranus were mother and son, but had a bunch of children together? They were the Titans that came before the gods? And when he didn’t like them, he threw them away into their mother/grandmother?” Clarke’s voice gets a pitch higher with each question. 

“Pretty much,” Bellamy says. 

“Damn, and I thought I had family problems,” she laughs. The sound it brings a wide smile to his face. He loves making her laugh. They continue watching his mythology documentary that he brought up a while ago on his couch. They still aren’t touching, but she seems to be getting more comfortable around him. Baby steps. 

The show is talking about Persephone being kidnapped by her husband Hades when Clarke’s phone dings. He doesn’t think anything of it, why would he, but it’s the face she makes when she reads it that worries him. Her eyes go wide and mouth slightly opens. She looks afraid again, but as soon as it was there, it is gone. He decides not to bring it up because if she wanted to talk about it, she would say something. 

They continue watching their show, but her phone never stops making sound. After an hour, she turns it on silent. Then the calls come. Bellamy can tell she is trying to ignore them but isn’t having any luck. 

After another half hour of muffled buzzing coming from her side of the couch she sighs and says, “I’m sorry, but someone doesn’t know what it means when I ignore their calls.” Then she turns it off for good. 

“Is there something I can do? Talk to whoever it is and tell them to leave you alone?” he offers. 

“No!” she exclaims quickly. “I mean, it’s only my mother. She keeps trying to get me to move home again, but I won’t do it.” He has a hard time believing she would have looked so afraid if it was really her mother contacting her. 

Bellamy takes a chance and slides down next to her. She flinches but doesn’t move away. She keeps her eyes on his and he almost forgets that he was planning on saying something to her. He moves his gaze from her eyes to her pink lips. She notices his shift in his gaze because the next thing he sees is the blush rising in her cheeks. 

When he makes eye contact again, he says, “I told you that you could talk to me about anything, remember? Please, I can see there is something wrong.” He goes to take her hand but remembers the doorknob situation and pulls back. “Just talk to me. Maybe I can help you through whatever you are trying to shoulder alone.” 

Lost in her eyes, he barely feels his hand move down in his lap. He looks down and finds Clarke’s small hand lacing her fingers in his much bigger one. The electricity he feels between them is something he hopes she feels too. 

“Bellamy, I appreciate so much that you want to help me. But this is something I have to overcome myself.” 

“You don’t have to do anything by yourself, Princess,” he whispers to her. He takes her cheek in his other hand and caresses it with his thumb. He starts slowly pulling her towards him while giving her plenty of time to pull away if she wants to. He feels their foreheads touch and is about to make sure their lips meet next, but a loud ring interrupts them. Clarke jumps back, looks away, and take a deep breath. Bellamy let’s his head drop into one hand and answers his phone with the other. 

He looks at the caller ID and presses answer. “What do you want, Murphy,” he grumbles. 

“Hey, Blake! We are heading to Raven’s house tonight! You and Clarke better be there!” Then the line goes dead. 

He turns to Clarke, who he finds staring at her hands, and asks, “Want to go to Raven’s tonight?” 

“Sure. Sounds fun.” 

“We don’t have to if you don’t want to. It’s up to you.” He secretly hopes she changes her mind. 

“No, let’s go. Besides, I haven’t been to any of their places yet.” He lets her walk in front of him so he can lock the door behind them. She says quietly, barely audible, “And if you are there, I know I will be okay.” The spark within him grows brighter. 

Bellamy and Clarke can hear the music in Raven’s apartment from down the hallway and he wonders how she hasn’t gotten any complaints from neighbors. They have to pound on the door for anyone to come open it. 

“What’s up!” Murphy yells in their faces when they get inside. “So glad you could make it!” 

“Are we celebrating something?” Clarke screams to Raven who she finds bouncing on her couch with a drink in her hand. Emori and Octavia are standing over in the corner trying to talk. 

“It’s a Friday night, what else is there to celebrate?” she yells back. The time for yelling comes to an end, though, when thumping comes from both above and below them. Raven turns down the music to a reasonable level after that. “I always like to see how far I can push it.” 

Clarke starts laughing and walks over to get a drink. Bellamy watches as she pours herself one and looks over to him mouthing, “Want one?” He nods his head a few seconds later, she is back with both drinks in tow. 

“Are the parties here the same as your place but with a different view?” she asks Bellamy. 

“Here we have more drinks and more games.” 

“What kind of games?” 

“Cards Against Humanity, What Do You Meme, probably some beer pong, and others that I may not know of.” 

“I’m up for some pong,” she says before taking a drink. That pulls a chuckle out of Bellamy. He never would have thought she was a beer pong kind of girl. 

“Then I guess we should get a couple more people and wipe the floor with them.” He holds up his hand for a high five. She slaps it but instead of taking it away, she wraps her fingers around his, lets their hands drop, and stays like that for a moment. 

Without taking his eyes off her, he shouts into the room, “Hey, Murphy! Emori! We want to play pong!” 

“Prepare to be demolished, Blake!” Emori cheers. They make their way over to the makeshift pong table and sets up their cups. Bellamy fills each one halfway with beer and the game starts. 

Clarke is ridiculously good at this game. Bellamy watches in awe as she sinks three in a row. Murphy downs each cup and thanks her when she misses her fourth shot. Murphy makes one but misses the next. She drinks the contents and hands the ball to Bellamy. He doesn’t make a single one. 

“Wow! I thought you would be better at this!” she joked. 

“My talents lay elsewhere,” he responds but only so she could hear. 

“Yeah? And what talents might those be?” She gives him a sly grin and he is about to tell her exactly what she wants to hear when Murphy says something first. 

“Will you two stop flirting and throw the damn ball!” Apparently Emori already threw it and missed, too. Clarke jumps back. He didn’t realize they had floated so close together. He hands her the ball and she sinks two more shots. Murphy is starting to get annoyed. 

“Where the hell did you learn to play so well?” he grunts. 

“What? You don’t believe that I can pick up a talent this fast?” 

“No. Not at all. Impossible.” 

Bellamy laughs from his gut. “He is just jealous that he is getting beat by someone he barely knows.” 

Clarke takes in the praise. Murphy comes back, though, landing five shots in a row. It may as well be Murphy against Clarke for all that him and Emori are contributing. Emori seems to have the same idea and backs away from the table along with him. They meet beside the middle of the table and cheer on their respective people. 

“You got this, Princess,” he tells her. She has five left compared to his four. He can see her concentrating. She really wants to win. Her arm is in throwing position and she releases. One, two, three! Murphy drinks and takes the ball in his hand. 

“Getting scared, Clarke?” 

“What is there to be scared for? There is no way you make another four in a row.” 

“That’s what you think.” He almost proves her and Bellamy wrong, but misses his last shot. Two against one. _Clarke’s got this in the bag,_ he thinks to himself. 

And he is right. She puts the last two in with ease. Murphy looks like he wants to flip the table, but he calms down enough to shake her hand. She stops a second before taking it and when he is turned away, she takes a deep breath. Then she rushes over to him and wraps her arms around his shoulders in a strong embrace. 

He hugs her back. When they pull away from each other, he talks into a fake microphone and says, “You just beat John Murphy at his own game! How do you feel?” 

She leans into the “microphone” and softly replies, “I feel like part of the family.” 

“Good. You deserve to be here.” 

With tears brimming her eyes, she leans in again and tells him, “I think it’s time I tell you something about my past. But not here.” 

Bellamy feels the small victory resonate in his chest. She is finally willing to open up to him. 

“Do you want to leave right now?” he asks her. 

“Not quite. I’m having fun that I haven’t had in a long time.” 

“All right. Let me know when you are ready,” he says. 

“Who is up for a game of Truth or Dare?” Raven shouts to the people in the room. Everyone but them raise their glasses in agreement and start to congregate on the couch and chairs. Bellamy feels Clarke tense beside him. 

“We don’t have to play,” he whispers in her ear. 

She seems to collect herself and replies, “No, let’s do it. Unless you don’t want to.” 

“I’m right here if you need me.” 

“Thanks, Bell.” She walks over and sits on the ground to complete the circle. Bellamy sits next to her, their hands only and inch from touching. Murphy goes first. 

“Truth or dare... Raven?” 

“Dare, of course,” she declares with confidence. 

Murphy gets an evil grin on his face. “I dare you to send a picture of you kissing Emori to one person that isn’t in this room.” He expects Emori to hit him, but she just laughs it off and prepares herself. 

Bellamy makes sure to watch Clarke and her reactions. He really doesn’t want to put her in this situation. Their dares, even their truths, could get uncomfortable. He hasn’t confirmed what he thought earlier, but he is 90% sure that’s why Clarke covers herself up and is so jumpy around people. 

Without hesitation, she takes out her phone, goes to Emori, and takes a selfie of them kissing. He doesn’t know who she sent it to, but that’s not his problem. 

“Alright... Bellamy. Truth or dare?” 

“Truth.” 

“Party pooper. Okay,” she looks between him and Clarke, “have you ever experienced love at first sight?” Well that could have been worse. She didn’t ask with who, thank God. 

“Yes,” is all he says, but he looks out the corner of his eye and sees Clarke’s neck flush with red. He also notices the snickers and muffled laughter from the rest of the group. 

“Murphy, truth or dare?” Bellamy moves on to get the spotlight off them. He doesn’t know why he always agrees to play this game. 

“Do you even have to ask?” 

“Go put on some of Raven’s make up and post a picture on Facebook.” 

“If I wasn’t as drunk as I am right now, I would probably fight you on this. But alas. Raven, where is it?” 

“You will find it somewhere in the bathroom,” she directs. Ten minutes later, Murphy struts out like he is a model on the runway and sits back down. 

“Who is taking the pic?” Murphy asks. 

“Get over here, cockroach,” Emori huffs. She takes it, looks for approval and hands his phone back to him. Pretty soon everyone is checking to see if they can see it. Once they do, the room bursts out laughing. A few more rounds take place and Bellamy is glad that none of landed on Clarke yet. He doesn’t think they are purposefully avoiding her, but they know the types of things the rest of them will do and they want to it. 

It doesn’t take long before he hears her name get called, though. Octavia is the one calling on her. 

“Clarke, truth or dare.” Bellamy tries to get Octavia to make eye contact with him so he can silently tell her nothing too extreme, but she never looks his way. 

“Dare.” 

He expected that. There is no way she would want to possibly bring to light whatever she is feeling in front of everyone here. Especially if she just told him she was willing to tell only him when they got back to their apartments. 

“I dare you to go in the closet with Bellamy for three minutes. Do whatever you wish, but maybe it will knock some sense into you both.” 

He ignores her comment and looks to Clarke for what to do. She looks like she is holding in the panic she feels because she doesn’t move a muscle. 

“Come on, it’s just a closet,” Raven says. She has no idea. He is about to throw the pillow sitting next to him at her, but Clarke suddenly stands up with his hand in hers and drags him into the small room. 

“Hey, are you okay?” he calmly asks her. 

He can hear her deep breaths. They start slow but get quick real fast. “I thought I could do this, but I can’t.” 

“It’s okay, we can leave. You don’t have to do this.” He reaches for the door, but she stops him. 

“Wait. I don’t want them seeing me like this. I need to calm down.” 

“What do you need me to do?” He wants to touch her. Wants to hold her in his arms and let her know that he is there for her. What he doesn’t expect is for her to be the one to reach around him. Her small but strong arms close around his abdomen and she rests her cheek on his chest. 

“Just put your arms around me and tell me I am okay. That I am worrying about nothing.” 

“Clarke, you are safe. I’m not sure what you have gone through, but right here, right now, you are okay. I’ve got you.” He feels the faintest bit of moisture soaking through his shirt. “When you decide you can leave this closet, we are going to go home. There is no reason for you to go through this.” She takes a moment to slow her breathing again, and when the group outside says they can come out, she wipes her tears and opens the door. 

Bellamy doesn’t give them any time to say whatever they want to because he tells them they are leaving. Clarke isn’t feeling well. They say their goodbyes and walk out Raven’s door. He can hear them bust out laughing, so he knows exactly what they are thinking. But he doesn’t care. All he cares about right now is getting Clarke home and making her feel safe again. 

The ride back to their building is silent. Honestly, he is okay with that. Just being in the same space as Clarke makes him feel elated. The only thing that made it better was her hand slipping into his at some point. When they arrive and get out of his car, they join hands again and walk up to their floor. 

“Thanks for being there for me, Bellamy. You are making this transition way easier than I anticipated.” 

He is about to tell her that there is nothing else he would rather be doing, but his thoughts get interrupted as soon as they round the corner towards their apartments. Clarke pulls her hand out of his as fast she did when they both touched the doorknob. He looks at her profile and finds the same terrified look he did then, too. Her eyes are wide, and he sees a drop of sweat forming at her temple. The worst thing, though, is she is protectively holding a spot on her side. That can’t mean anything good. 

He finally turns his head from her to the spot she is staring. Leaning against her door is a guy her age with greasy black hair and wrinkled clothes. 

“Hey, baby. Told you I would find you,” the man says. 

“What are you doing here?” Clarke’s voice is barely audible to Bellamy, so there is no way he heard it. 

“Let’s go inside and talk.” He looks to Bellamy with pure hatred. “Maybe do some other stuff, too?” He waggles his eyebrows at that. 

She ducks her head and tries not to cry as she walks forward. 

“Wait, Clarke.” He steps in front of her. “Don’t go with him. Come with me inside my place and I will call the cops.” Bellamy makes sure his voice is low enough so the man can’t hear him. 

“He will find a way, Bellamy. Besides, it’s no use fighting Finn. He’s got friends in high places.” 

“Clarke...” he pleads. 

She doesn’t say anything, just walks around him to her door and moves to unlock it. While she fumbles with her keys, the guy, Finn, takes his hands and grips her shoulders. Hard. He can see her wincing in pain. Before they walk in her door, Finn gives one last look to Bellamy. 

_Try to stop me,_ it says. 

Anger is pulsing through his veins filling every inch of his body. 

_I will stop you._

_And you are going to wish you were dead._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bellamy tries to figure out a way to help Clarke even though she says she doesn't want it.

It’s two in the morning and Bellamy lies awake in his bed. He can’t shake the feeling that something bad is happening across the hall. The way Clarke held her side when she saw Finn made his stomach drop. It couldn’t have been a fresh wound because he has watched closely since she moved in. The only winces he has seen were reflexive to proximity or sudden touch. She never reacted like she did to Finn. 

He is too hot. He gets up to get a drink of water and maybe watch some tv. He doubts he will be able to get any sleep tonight. There is nothing good on at this time of the morning. Instead his gets out a book and turns on a small lamp. Not five pages into his story, he hears yelling coming from outside his door. He waits a few minutes to see if it stops, but it doesn’t. Bookmarking his page, he lifts himself off the couch. 

Bellamy politely knocks on her door, and it immediately swings open. He is faced with the violent hurricane Finn. “What do you want?” Finn snaps. 

“I heard yelling. I wanted to know if everything is okay?” Bellamy looks over Finn’s shoulder to try and get a glimpse of Clarke. He prefers visual confirmation of her safety over this asshole’s word. 

“We are fine,” he says with an Oscar-worthy grin plastered on his face. “Clarke just spilled some juice on a pair of my pants.” 

“Is that really something to yell at her for? You know there is a washing machine in the building, right?” Bellamy can see he is testing Finn’s patience. 

“Why don’t you turn around and mind your own business?” Finn’s nostrils flare with anger and his fist clenches at his side. It’s a miracle Bellamy hasn’t gotten punched yet. 

“Why don’t you treat her with a little respect?” He is walking on thin ice. Pretty soon it is going to shatter underneath him, and he is going to freeze to death. 

“Enough!” Clarke’s voice rings out over the two men fighting. “Bellamy, I am fine. You can go.” 

He knows she needs help, but she won’t take his. He doesn’t know the right way to handle this. “Clarke, tell me what you want me to do.” 

“I think she just did, buddy,” Finn grunts. 

“I said what she wants. Not you.” 

Clarke peeks into his line of sight. He can’t tell if she is significantly hurt from the doorway, but at least she is there. “I want you to go.” She sounds so defeated, and it makes Bellamy’s chest ache. He wants Finn gone. Right now. 

Instead of pleading further, he dips his head and says, “Goodnight, Clarke.” Before she gets a chance to reply, the door slams in his face. He recedes into his apartment and collapses on the couch. 

Sleep. 

That’s all he wants. But how is going to get it when he is doing God knows what to her and all she tells him is to go away. He knows he should call the police, but if what she said was true, him having friends in high places, then he could be let go and come back to do even worse things. He won’t risk her life. 

Bellamy wakes up with a sore neck. Apparently, he never made it to his bed after his conversation with Finn, but at least his mind gave his body time to rest. He does his morning routine to get ready for work and heads out the door. As usual, he is looking forward to seeing Clarke. But along with feeling the pull of attraction when they are together, he is hoping she will take advantage of being alone with him to tell him what she wants or how he can help. 

In the hallway, he waits for Clarke. She is a few minutes late, and that worries him, but she eventually opens the door. He gives her a weak smile and says, “Good morning. Are you okay?” 

She doesn’t meet his eyes. Instead of replying, she holds the door open. Seconds later Finn joins them. “Mornin’. Ready for work?” 

Bellamy wants to say something that matches the intensity of his blood boiling, but Clarke finally raises her eyes to his and microscopically shakes her head. Finn seems to notice their communication and slides an arm around her shoulders. He notices her grimace in pain and moves her left hand to her right collar bone. To try and cover her movement, she takes Finn’s hand. That is what makes Bellamy look away. 

“Well, there is no reason for us both to be late,” Clarke says and leads the way towards their cars. Bellamy lets them walk in front of him, and Finn gives him another dirty look as he passes him. Is there any other look he can emote? 

When they get to their cars, before Clarke gets in the driver’s seat, Finn plants a hard, forceful kiss on her. He pulls away, pinches her cheek, and walks around to get in the car. Clarke takes a deep breath and gets in herself. 

This is going to be a long day. 

Nine hours later, he is sitting on his couch scrolling through channels. He needs to get figure out what to do, but first he thinks he should let the rest of their friends know what is going on. He calls Murphy and tells him to gather the group and meet them at his place in twenty. He knows he should go to one of their apartments, but he can’t get himself to leave knowing Finn is fifty feet away possibly hurting Clarke some more. 

Fashionably late, as usual, everyone storms into his living room. They have drinks in tow and collapse into the same spots they always do. Murphy is about to give some sarcastic line about how all they do is watch movies here, but he sees the serious look on Bellamy’s face and stops. 

“Guys, there is something you should know. It’s about Clarke...” Bellamy takes a breath because admitting that she is getting abused is almost as hard as witnessing it happen. 

“I knew you guys would get together!” Raven exclaims. 

“Totally called it,” Octavia adds. 

“No, it’s not like that. Its-” He gets cut off by a strong pounding on the door. Bellamy is confused, but he knows there is only one other person that would be coming here. He opens it and steps aside. Clarke walks in but is soon followed by Finn. 

Before anyone has a chance to speak, Clarke says, “Hey, guys. This is my boyfriend,” Bellamy almost chokes on the word, “Finn. He is going to be sticking around from now on. Finn, this is Murphy, Emori, Raven, and Octavia.” 

“Boyfriend? Didn’t see that one coming,” Raven mutters. Bellamy glares at her, but she has no reason to understand what it means. There is only one spot left after he sits down so, instead of being a gentleman, Finn takes it for himself. Bellamy is about to sit on the floor so Clarke can sit in his spot, but Finn is already dragging her to sit on his lap. She looks so uncomfortable and all he wants to do is get rid of Finn so she doesn’t have to go through this anymore. 

They end up watching Grown Ups, and combined with alcohol, it seems to make the movie funnier. That’s what it looks like for the rest of the group, anyways. Bellamy isn’t drinking because he wants to be sober enough to take note of every little thing Finn does and how Clarke reacts. At one point, Finn decides to get up and get a beer from the fridge and basically dumps her out of his lap. She stands up and waits politely for him to come back, and he can tell she is purposefully avoiding eye contact with him. Finn gets back with only one drink in his hand. He beats her almost every night and he can’t even bother to get her a drink? Pathetic. 

“Clarke, would you like a drink?” Bellamy asks her. 

“I--” 

“She is fine. Wouldn’t want her getting clumsy tonight,” Finn says. 

“How about you let her speak for herself?” he barks. He sees Murphy turn his head towards them, but he keeps his eyes on Finn. 

“It’s okay, Bellamy. I’m not feeling well anyway,” she utters. “But I do need to go to the bathroom.” She gets up and leaves, but Finn follows her. He wouldn’t follow her in, would he? Bellamy watches him, and he thankfully stops outside the door, but he still thinks it’s ridiculous for him to be there. 

After the movie, they sit around and talk for a while but end up going home earlier than usual. Clarke and Finn are the first ones to leave. Finn says he wants to get Clarke home so he can “take care of her.” Bellamy gets sick to his stomach thinking about his hands on her. They all watch as he grips her elbow and drags her out of the apartment. Bellamy watches the rest of their reactions. They look confused, but they always do when they drink. He needs to tell them what is going on, but it would be useless in their current condition. 

When they are all gone, he faceplants onto his bed. He never would have thought caring about Clarke this much would be so exhausting. But he also didn’t know what kind of problems she was having and how much she needed his help. Bellamy will do anything to get her out of this, even if it costs him all his sleep and sanity. 

Not very long after the gang leaves, Bellamy hears Clarke’s door slam. He hurries to his own and listens for his footsteps. When he is sure Finn is gone and around the corner, he slips out of his apartment and softly taps on the wood. He doesn’t get a response, so he knocks again, a little harder. Still nothing. He leans his forehead against the frame and says, “Please, Clarke. Open up. I need to know you are ok.” 

She finally opens it, but he can barely see her. He takes the knob and slowly widens the crack. She is only in her bra and panties and trying to cover herself with a small blanket. He tries not to stare, but it’s useless. She is so beautiful. 

“What do you want?” she asks. 

“Where did he stalk off to?” 

“To his favorite bar down the street. Is that really why you came over here?” She narrows her eyes, slightly. 

“I told you, I need to know if you are okay.” 

“I am,” she whispers, but he can see she isn’t telling him everything. 

“You don’t need to lie to me.” He starts looking at her chest. Not in that way most guys would. Not the way Finn does. He finds dark purple bruises right above her breasts, as if she was held too hard. Right next to those are a couple scars that look like old scratch marks. He sees the same purple marks down on her thighs. The sight makes him sick, and not because the marks are ugly. Because someone has the audacity to put them on her. 

“I’m going to kill him,” he growls. 

“Bellamy, stop! You can’t do anything. He will get arrested, sure, but he will get out. He always does.” 

“So he has done this to women before you?” 

“I’m not completely sure, but I do know he is a shitty person that commits shitty crimes and never does any time.” She is on the verge of tears now. “So you need to go because he can’t see you here.” 

“Let him come at me. I’m sure I can take him.” 

“Oh, Bellamy...” she steps closer to him and las her hand on his cheek. He leans into it while she says, “I can’t lose you or our friends, so leave this alone.” 

“Don’t ask me to do that. Let me find a way.” 

“No. Go home.” Next thing he knows, he is staring at the white wood of her door. 

If she won’t let him help, he is going to have to take matters into his own hands. It’s not what she wants, according to her, but he can’t let him get by with this anymore. Bellamy locks his apartment and heads down to his car. 

Five minutes later, he is standing outside the only bar on the street and looking in the window. He isn’t sure how this is going to play out, but that usually happens with plans that were hatched in less than five minutes. He enters the bar and slides into the open seat next to Finn. 

“What’s up, man,” he says to Finn. 

“What are you doing here?” Finn spits. 

“I just left Clarke’s place,” he starts and gauges Finn’s reaction. “Besides, I thought it was a good night to hang out in a shitty bar with an even shittier person.” Bellamy starts to chuckle. “But, hey, any place is shitty when you are in it.” 

“Is there a reason you are taunting me like this? Because I think it would be a good idea to stop.” 

“What are you going to do? Hit me?” 

“Well, as fun as that would be, I think it’s time I leave.” 

“Feeling threatened, are we?” Come on, make him mad. 

“There is no place on Earth that I could ever be threatened by you,” Finn retorts. 

“Then I guess you shouldn’t worry about Clarke being in my apartment right now. That she is getting into one of my tshirts? That it barely reaches below--” 

CRACK 

Bellamy’s jaw is throbbing from the right hook he receives. “Aw, is that all you got?” he taunts. The pain in his face is matched with a blow to the gut. When he collapses on the floor, his spine is kicked so hard he swears he can’t feel his feet. 

“Is this what you do to her?” he asks loudly enough so the gathering crowd can hear. “Does hurting her like this make you feel like a man?” Finn stomps on his knee next. It didn’t break, but it sure is going to hurt like hell. 

“If she would just do what she is told she wouldn’t be in this situation! I am in charge, and when she disobeys me, she pays the price.” Bingo. He just confessed to domestic abuse in front of all these people. There is no way with all the witnesses he will get off free. 

Finally, people pull Finn away from Bellamy and call the cops. He stays there and watches Finn get hauled away in cuffs. 

“I will be back,” he says. “And she is not going to appreciate what you did tonight.” 

That statement gives him chills. He made sure people were listening; that they heard what he has done, but it still worries him. 

What if he just put Clarke at an even bigger risk than she was at before?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any mistakes. It was late and got tired of editing, but I wanted to publish it since it was all fresh in my mind.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke reveals her past and how Finn got involved. Things heat up between Bellamy and Clarke.

Bellamy wakes up to an intense pounding in his head. He wants to believe it’s from the alcohol he drank last night, but he knows it isn’t true. He barely drank more than two drinks. He knows exactly why his head is pounding, why his back hurts, and why he can’t put pressure on his one knee. When he walks into the bathroom, he realizes how bad he looks. His jaw is a dark purple with a small gash in the middle of his cheek. Rolling up his sweatpants reveals the same color bruise on the side of his knee. Luckily, the kick to his back didn’t result in much. That was the one he was worried most about. There is only a faint gray blob to the left of his spine. 

It’s a good thing he woke up earlier than his alarm, also. It takes him an extra fifteen minutes to get ready for work. At least he doesn’t have a high activity job. The hardest part will be giving a bullshit reason to everybody as to how it happened. 

He walks out his door and sees Clarke right away. She is sitting on the ground cross-legged and rubbing her hands together again. If he didn’t sense something was off, he would think it’s cute. 

“Good morning, Clarke. Everything okay?” he asks. 

Without looking at him, she tells him, “Finn didn’t come home last night. I never want to see him, but I don’t know what happened. What if he is out hurting someone else? What if he comes back and I’m doing something he doesn’t like?” She finally gets up and locks her door. 

“I doubt he will be going anywhere for a while,” he says quietly. For the first time he met her, he doesn’t want to look straight at her. 

“What is that supposed to mean?” Clarke asks, but when she lays her eyes on him, he can hear her stop breathing. He slowly turns his head and faces her. “What. Did. You. Do?” 

“It doesn’t matter,” he says. “He is gone and should stay that way for quite some time.” Her eyes go hard, and she furrows her brows. He has seen her scared. Has seen her happy, sad, shy. But this is a new look. 

She is angry. 

“I TOLD you not to do anything! To leave him alone and let me handle it!” There are tears forming in her eyes. “And this is exactly why. I never wanted anyone to get hurt because of me. Especially you.” 

“And I never want him to hurt you again. I’m sorry I did the opposite of what you asked, but I couldn’t let him keep doing this to you.” 

“So, where is he exactly?” 

“In jail somewhere. At the bar last night, we were talking,” he starts explaining how he got him to attack him. She cringes when he tells her about the other two injuries besides his jaw but keeps listening. “I never fought back because I needed to make sure there was nothing he could use against me when the police came.” He finishes and Clarke stares at him. 

“Well, he will get out and I will have to start apartment hunting again.” She starts walking away without him. He tries to catch up, but his limp makes it impossible to match her faster pace. By the time he makes it to his car, her is already pulling out of the driveway. He knew she would be upset, but he didn’t expect for her to move again. He will do anything to stop that from happening. 

Eight very long hours later, Bellamy collapses on his couch and winces from the pain in his knee. Then he curses himself out for not getting a snack before laying down. Instead of getting up, he turns on the History Channel. The problem is he can’t stop thinking about Clarke long enough to focus on the show. Her voice echoes in his head. _Especially you_ , she said. Does that mean she has as deep of feelings for him as he does for her? If so, how does he protect her? How does he get her to stay? 

He is so busy trying to figure out a solution he barely hears the pounding on his door. He slowly lifts himself off the couch and hobbles over to the source of the noise. He opens it to find Clarke on the other side. She brushes past him and stands in the middle of his living room. He stays at the door, keeping it open, but follows her with his eyes. 

“Don’t just stand there. Come sit down,” she orders him. He can tell she is still mad, but her being here means she must care about him at some level. He does what he is told and never takes his gaze off her. When he settles back into the couch, she walks over to his freezer and pulls out three ice packs. She sits down next to him, the closest she ever has, and places one on each bruise. Her body is turned so she is facing him. She sets her elbow on the back of the couch and rests her head in that hand. 

“Did you come over to make sure I iced?” he asks her. It came out harsher than he intended. 

“I got a call from the police station today. They told me to go down as soon as possible, so I left work to go. When I got there, the officer led me to a conference room, not interrogation, and asked me about Finn and our past. I didn’t want to say anything because I knew he would get out, but I found myself spilling everything.” 

“I’m sorry you had to relive everything.” He doesn’t ask about anything before he met her. If she wants to talk about it, she will tell him. He won’t force her. 

“I’m not done,” she snipped. No interruptions. Got it. “Then they told me the charges Finn were being held under. Domestic abuse is the main one, but there was also sexual harassment, bar fights, and even rape allegations. Long story short, he will be going away for a very long time.” She stops talking and stares at him, so he thinks it’s okay to speak again. 

“So, it’s over? Isn’t this good news?” 

“I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.” 

“Let’s wait a few days and if you don’t hear anything about him being released, you can start to relax. I don’t know why he hasn’t gotten out yet, but I don’t care. As long as he is far away from you that’s all that matters.” 

“Thank you, Bellamy. It means the world to me that you care so much.” 

“There is nothing that would make me stop caring about you,” he says in a husky voice. He sees her glance down at his lips for a split second and looks away. 

He thinks she might lean in, but instead she whispers, “I think it’s time I tell you everything.” 

“You don’t have to, Clarke. Not if it upsets you.” 

“It will always upset me, but if I keep it bottled up like I have, I will never be able to deal with it.” Then she looks straight into his eyes again. “Or move on from it.” 

He ignores what that might mean, for now, and says, “Alright, tell me everything you want me to know.” 

“Finn was born to two drug addicts. They never paid attention to him because they were constantly getting high. The only time he was ever given any kind of attention was when he was getting beaten or locked in closets. Usually it was his dad, because he beat both him and his mom, but there was an occasional slap from his mother. By the time he was seven, they got sloppier with where they bruised him. People were getting suspicious and he was eventually taken away from his parents. But by then, the damage was already done.” 

“He was put into foster care and bounced around families. No one could handle or control his erratic, violent behavior. He had four families in five years. He would hit his new siblings or have rage fits at every new school because the other kids wouldn’t listen to him. He was taking after his father even if he didn’t realize it at the time. By the time he got to his sixth family, a nice couple with no kids, he was a senior in high school. That’s where he met me. You are probably thinking how I could fall in love with a guy like that.” 

Bellamy just shrugs his shoulders and says, “I have no doubt you had a reason. Keep going, you are doing great.” 

She takes his hand and continues. “He was so sweet. He always put me first and took me on the best dates. After a year, I knew I had found the man of my dreams. I thought I did anyways. Then one night we were arguing. My dad had just died and my mom wasn’t talking to me, so I called him. He came straight over and comforted me. He brought my favorite ice cream and movie and we sat in my room. I don’t know where my mom was at the time, but I didn’t want her to come home and see him. My parents never liked him. 

“After the movie was over, I told him he should leave before my mother got home, but he wouldn’t. He said his parents didn’t care if he was out all night, so that’s what he planned on doing. I laughed at first because I thought he was joking and he was going to leave after that, but he still stayed. I kept telling him that he had to go; that I wasn’t kidding. We got into a full-blown argument about how I care too much what my parents think and that I should act for myself. Then I got upset because my dad just died, and I wasn’t going to act like a dumb teenager when mom was so vulnerable and upset.” 

“That’s the first time he hit me. A slap across the face.” Bellamy realizes her hand is still in his, so he gives it a small squeeze and breaks eye contact. A few seconds later, he feels his chin being lifted to look at her again. 

“Do you want to hear it all? I can stop.” 

She doesn’t look like she wants to stop, so if she can handle telling the story, he can handle listening to it. “Yes, go on, please.” 

“I was so mad and was about to push him out the door when he broke down crying. He said he was so sorry and that he never meant to hit her. Then he told me about his past, which is everything I already told you, and explained to me that he is trying to turn over a new leaf. He is trying to be better. I believed him. Over the next few years, while I went to college, he worked in the area and we lived together. I never got to make any real friends, though, because Finn was always there. For every time he hit me, or unnecessarily yelled at me, there were three times where it looked like he was holding back and acting rationally. I excused his behavior with genetics and bad childhood. I told myself he would overcome it eventually. There were more good times than bad, so I thought was an accomplishment.” 

“One day I came home, and Finn told me he saw his birth father, the one that always beat him. He was angry at first, but then he told me that his father went through rehab, went back to school, and became a lawyer. I took that as great news because it proved he can turn his crappy life into a much greater one. I thought Finn would use him as inspiration for his own life. Turns out it went the exact opposite of what I hoped.” 

“Finn started going out every night and coming home extremely drunk. Sometimes there would be large cuts on his face and hands. Sometimes he would leave for a couple days and come back like he never left. Then the beatings started. Any little thing that upset him would result in a new bruise or broken bone. One time I didn’t fill his cup with enough beer, and he threw it in my face and told me to get more.” 

“By then I had enough of it, so I called the police. I reported everything he had done and watched as they took him away. I was done with him, finally. For about a week. He showed up at my door again and told me how his lawyer had gotten him out with minimal charges. I asked how that was even possible, but he wouldn’t tell me. I was so confused why he had such a sudden change in behavior after he met with his birth father. Then I connected the dots.” 

“When Finn was in the shower, I took his phone and found his father’s number. I texted him from my phone and asked him to meet me the next week. I wasn‘t fast enough, though, because he saw me on his phone. He never figured out what I did, but me touching it was enough. He beat me hard that night. That’s where the injury on my side came from. I called the police again thinking that another report so close to the last one would result in him staying in jail for even longer, but that wasn’t the case. He was back again.” 

“When I finally got to meet his father, he confirmed he was the man getting him out every time, even on charges that I didn‘t know about. He said Finn got taken away from him once and it wasn’t going to happen again. Not for these minor charges he was getting. Apparently, he didn’t believe the reports I made and chose to believe Finn when he said I was blowing everything out of proportion; that I am clumsy and that’s why I was always bruised. I decided to get away from him myself. I grabbed everything that would fit in my car, got a new phone and phone number, and drove away while he was out drinking. Wells was the only one that knew I left, but I told him to tell my mom eventually.” 

“That’s when I got here, and you know the rest,” she concludes. Bellamy has an ache in his chest. It’s threatening to explode from the hatred he has for Finn. While staring into her sad eyes, he feels their legs touch, and he can’t concentrate on anything else anymore. He feels the familiar desire to hold her. Even if that’s all he gets to do, it would be enough. He wants to show just how much he cares for her. 

“I’m sorry you had to go through all that,” he says while stroking the back of her hand with his thumb. 

“Nothing will make it ever go away, but telling you makes me feel freer than I have felt since he came into my life in high school.” Clarke removes Bellamy’s ice pack from his jaw and sets it down behind her. With a shaky breath, she gently lays her unoccupied hand on the bruise. He is too distracted to feel the pain. “And I want to move on from him. If I don’t, I will go insane,” she breathes. 

She is finally leaning in. Bellamy slowly meets her in the middle, they are so close they are breathing each other’s air. Their foreheads touch and she stops. He doesn’t dare go further; just waits for her to move again. He feels her take her hand out of his and he thinks their moment is over. Instead, she puts it on his other cheek as if to hold him there, like she never wants him to leave. 

They sit there and breathe each other in for another few seconds, lips only two inches apart. He is about to say something, he doesn’t know what, when he feels the tiniest pull on his cheeks. This is it. His heart is beating in his chest and he knows his hands are getting unattractively sweaty. He is usually quite a patient guy, but he wants her like no other girl he has wanted before. Bellamy is prepared for the soft touch of their lips, for the sweet taste of her when they close in. 

But none of it comes because of the loud knock on Bellamy’s door. Only a ghost of a kiss that could have been remains on his lips. When the knock sounded, Clarke jumped back, but their mouths were so close that their lips barely grazed each other’s. It’s not much, but he will take it. It gives him hope for the future. 

Bellamy is about to get up and answer it, but Clarke pushes him back down and gets it herself. The usual people stroll through and everyone starts talking at once. 

“Oh, hey Clarke.” 

“Where’s the beer?” 

“Does that mean Finn is here?” 

“Why are you so flushed?” 

Bellamy has no idea who said what. Except Murphy. He is most likely the one who asked about the beer. He looks at Clarke and sees the redness in her neck and cheeks. He probably has the same complexion right now. 

“Everyone, sit down. I have something to tell you,” she says. Bellamy didn’t expect her to tell them right away, but it’s up to her. She gives them nearly the same story he got, but she left out a few minor details. She mostly left out the details about when he hit her. She simply said he did it. 

They stay silent for a moment. Raven, Emori, and Octavia have tears in their eyes, and Murphy looks like he wants to smash something. 

“But you are saying he is in jail, now, right?” Murphy grunts. 

“I don’t know. It looks like that currently, but it took a week or two for him to get out the otoher times.” 

“We are here for you, Clarke,” Emori says. 

Instead of saying anything, Raven gets up and wraps her in her arms. Bellamy was about to say she shouldn’t suddenly touch her like that, but Clarke doesn’t flinch. That alone puts a smile on his face. She is finally feeling safe again in the arms of her family. 

Three weeks go by and nothing happens. Clarke and Bellamy go back to their usual routine in the morning. It was rough at first, but they got into it again. Random conversations, things they read on their phone overnight, anything was a possible conversation starter. They hang out together again and sit and watch movies. The best part is that he gets to hold her while they sit on his couch. She leans against him and he puts his arm around her. She takes interlocks their fingers and they stay like that for hours at a time. It’s everything he has been dreaming of since they met. 

The two are eating some pizza and scrolling through Facebook when Clarke stops moving. He has seen that happen before, and he doesn’t want her to relapse into that behavior again. He leans over and looks at her phone. It’s an article that has Finn’s mugshot on the cover. The headline reads “Local Man Taken to Prison for Multiple Abuse/Harassment/Rape Charges.” Clarke has a tear rolling down her cheek as she clicks on the link. 

According to the article, Finn has been sentenced to twenty years in prison due to years of crimes committed. 

“It’s only twenty years, Bell. That’s not very long.” Clarke’s words come out shaky, like she is trying not to cry anymore. 

“It’s a start. And besides, he knows how much trouble we caused him so he would be stupid to come back and try and get revenge. The next offense would probably give him a life sentence.” 

“You are probably right. We should go out and celebrate.” 

“Clarke, are you sure?” 

“Yeah! Let’s call everyone and go out. It will be fun. Finn is behind bars and there is nothing stopping me anymore.” She pulls Bellamy off the couch, but he stumbles. They fall to the floor and Clarke ends up sprawled on top of him. 

“You okay, Princess?” 

“I’m the one on top of you. Are you okay?” she giggled. That smile warms Bellamy‘s heart. Her eyes are filled with as much desire as he feels. He brushes the hair out of her face and caresses her cheek, but after a moment, her smile falters and she looks away. She drops her head against his chest and then gets up. Bellamy wonders what he did wrong. 

“Ready to go?” she asks before he can say anything. 

“Um, yeah, I will call Octavia and Raven if you want to call Murphy and Emori?” 

“Okay,” is all she says and walks out the door. 

He doesn’t know what he did to upset her, but he hopes he can talk to her about it later. Now it’s time to see Clarke celebrate without having to look over her shoulder every five minutes. Hopefully he is right and she doesn’t have to worry for twenty years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finn is in jail! But is it going to stay that way? Who knows?
> 
> If you have any questions or comments that you don't want to say here, you can always ask me on my tumblr: bellarkegriffin-blake
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang celebrates Finn being locked away, but another disaster strikes when the night is over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a trigger warning for those who have been attacked like this. I don't go into explicit detail, but it may bring bad memories or PTSD. I don't know, so I'm letting everyone know beforehand.

The ride to the club is a long and quiet one. Clarke sits in Bellamy’s passenger seat and stares out the window. He isn’t sure what he did to upset her, but he wishes he could take it back. He finds himself staring at her profile for much longer than a driver should. A couple times he drifts over the center line. 

Clarke flinches the first time it happens, but on the second time, she turns to him and snaps, “Do you need me to drive the rest of the way?” 

Stunned, he replies, “Um, no, I got it.” He doesn’t look at her again until they get to The Dropship. They get in the door and Bellamy’s ear drums feel like they are going to explode. Over by the bar they find Octavia and Raven. Murphy and Emori must not be here yet. Clarke runs over to the bar and gives the girls a big hug. Bellamy stands back and smiles at Clarke’s openness. It‘s something he didn’t think he would ever see. 

He joins them all and orders a drink. He is about to ask if Clarke wants anything but stops when he sees one already in her hand. Something is going on and he is going to find out. 

He steps up behind her when she is talking to Raven and lays a hand on the curve of her waist. Then he leans close and asks, “Want to go dance?” His voice is low and gruff but still loud enough for her to hear. 

Clarke turns around, gives him a seductive grin, then takes Raven’s and Octavia’s hands and drags them to the floor. He stands there and watches them go. Once they get there and start bouncing and jumping to the beat, her eyes never leave his. He smiles and gives a tiny shake of his head before turning and ordering another drink. That girl amazes him. 

When they are done dancing, they join Bellamy again and order another round. By then, Murphy and Emori stroll into their group. Apparently, that calls for a third round. Bellamy nurses his because he is driving and tries to make sure nobody else gets alcohol poisoning. 

Suddenly, a girl saunters up next to Bellamy, hips in full swing, and stops barely six inches away from him. She asks, “Hey, what’s your name?” and holds out her hand. 

“Uh, Bellamy,” he says and shakes it. 

“Want to go dance?” 

“I--” He is about to agree since he has done absolutely nothing tonight, but a hand grabs his instead. He keeps his eyes on the pretty girl and shrugs his shoulders. She stalks away like her favorite toy got taken from her. 

When his hand gets released, he is in the middle of the dance floor and finds Clarke standing in front of him. Her eyes are bright, and her cheeks are touched with pink from alcohol. He thinks it’s from the alcohol anyways. 

“I thought you didn’t want to dance with me!” he yells over the music. 

“We are here now, aren’t we!” she yells back. Was Clarke Griffin jealous? She starts swaying, bopping and more that he doesn’t know how to describe. Eventually, his hands find her curves again and they move together. Her back is against his front and they become synchronized. They know what each other is going to do before they do it. It's almost like they rehearsed it every night. 

Bellamy twirls her around so she is facing him and stares into her eyes. They keep moving to the beat and he takes in her body. She changed into a simple club dress that shows off every curve she has. It isn’t too short, but short enough that turns heads. She wraps her arms around his neck and rests her forehead against his. She presses her chest against his as if giving him a silent message. _Go on_ , she seems to say. 

But then the song ends, and they stand there breathing in the same air. Bellamy pulls away first and grabs her hand while they head back over to the bar. They are sweaty and Bellamy’s heart is pounding like it’s going to jump out of his chest. If having their legs touch on the couch made him lose concentration, their dancing made him insane. Clarke orders her fourth drink and leans against the bar. 

“Having fun, Princess?” he asks. The corner of his mouth raises with the question. 

“More fun than ever!” He can tell she is feeling the effects of the alcohol and he knows he should stop her, but this is the first time in a long time that she has been able to go all out. To act like herself and be who she wants to be. Who is he to take that away? 

Two hours and four drinks later, Bellamy is taking Clarke home. She doesn’t stop talking about how she is going to rearrange her apartment now that Finn is gone. She doesn’t want any memory of him left behind. And she is going to burn everything that he left there. 

When they get to their building, he helps her out of the car. She falls against him and he loves how they fit together. Even in her drunken state their bodies are two puzzle pieces that fit perfectly. They fit no matter what position they are in. 

Bellamy gets Clarke up to her apartment and she pulls out her keys. She tries to unlock the door, but her hands are too unsteady. He gently takes the keys from her and his fingers linger on hers. He feels his heart speed up again and reaches to unlock the door. As soon as it’s open, Clarke struts in and collapses on her couch. 

Bellamy takes one step in the living room and is surprised at the mess he finds. Finn’s clothes are everywhere with empty beer cans and cigarette boxes thrown in the mix. He follows Clarke’s path and sits down next to her. He lifts her feet into his lap and takes her shoes off for her. 

He has one off when she asks him, “Why haven’t you kissed me yet?” 

He freezes, the other foot mid-air literally waiting for the shoe to drop. He tries to think of something to say. He knows there is so much he wants to tell her but can’t think of how to do it. 

“I have wanted to kiss you since I met you, but I didn’t know about your past. Every time I wanted to get close to you, you backed off. After I found out about Finn, it all made sense, your behavior. For obvious reasons, I couldn’t do anything when the asshole was around, but when he got locked away? You were so convinced he would be back. I didn’t want to start something just to have it ripped away again. Then these past few weeks happened with no sign of him. I know we have been getting closer, I promise I feel it. I just... I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or relive anything painful.” 

He keeps his eyes on her feet and waits for her to say something back, but he gets nothing. He looks over and finds her fast asleep. He doesn’t think she heard a word he said. , he thinks. Bellamy picks her up and takes her into her bedroom, which is just as messy as the living room. He carefully lays her down under the covers and replaces the blankets over her body. 

He must have jostled her just enough to half wake her because as he starts to leave, her fingers close around his wrist. 

“Stay,” she mumbles. 

“Are you sure?” 

All she does is nod and moves over to make room for him. He climbs in beside her, on top of the covers, and drapes his arm over her waist. 

“Under, please.” 

He isn’t sure it’s the best idea, but he can’t say no. Never to her. When he gets situated into the same position, he feels her scoot into his chest so that every inch of her melts into him. She may not remember tomorrow how they got there, but he doesn’t care. It’s worth being able to be this close to her. He soon falls asleep with his face pressed into her neck, breathing in her scent. 

Bellamy isn’t sure how long he slept, but a sound wakes him with a start. It sounded like the front door closing. The hairs on the back of his neck are standing up on end. He is glad Clarke didn’t hear it and wake up, too. He concentrates hard and listens to any more sounds coming from outside the bedroom. Faint footsteps walk around the living room, but they don’t come any closer. 

Bellamy slides out of the covers, careful not to wake the sleeping beauty, and silently walks out of the room. In the hallway, he can hear much better. The footsteps aren’t rushed, like if they were looking for something, just calm and steady. Then he hears the couch cushions collapse under weight. _What the hell is going on_ , he thinks to himself. He finally peeks into the living room to find the same head of greasy black hair that was standing outside Clarke’s door all those weeks ago. 

No. Way. 

“Bellamy Blake. Should’ve known you would end up in her bed eventually,” Finn whispers. Bellamy steps into the room and stares at him. 

“How did you get out?” There is no logical reason he isn’t behind bars. If his arrest and charges were on the news, his dad didn’t get him out of it. 

“Not the usual way, I will tell you that. I had to get creative this time.” 

“So you escaped.” Bellamy is struggling to keep his voice quiet. If he can get Finn out of the building so Clarke doesn’t see him, that would be best. “Why don’t we take a walk you can tell me exactly what you want,” he bargains. 

“I think you know exactly what I want.” Finn looks over Bellamy’s shoulder towards the bedroom. “And the only thing in my way is you.” He slowly gets up and reveals the knife in his hand. Bellamy isn’t worried; he knows he can take him. What worries him is Clarke seeing them fight. 

Suddenly Finn lunges at him, knife out front. Bellamy takes his wrist and twists his arm behind his back. He grunts in pain which makes Bellamy twist harder. The knife falls to the ground with a dull thud. 

“Damn, I thought that would have been harder,” Bellamy says. 

Finn doesn’t respond. Instead, he makes a sudden motion with his free arm. Then a sharp pain starts in his leg and floods the rest of his body. The only thing is, it isn’t pain spreading, it’s the opposite. His whole body is numb within seconds. He expects to fall to the ground, but Finn turns around and gently lays his head down. 

“Can’t have you getting knocked out. You would miss all the fun.” Bellamy can’t feel anything, but his vision goes blurry. No, he is getting moved. Next thing he sees is the inside of Clarke‘s room from the hallway. He wants to scream; wants to get Clarke’s attention before he does whatever he plans on doing. He didn’t want her to wake up and see Finn, but that was before he got paralyzed. Now she needs a warning. 

Dread is filling his chest and he can barely breathe. He watches as Finn climbs into the same position he was in not ten minutes ago, only he doesn’t cover them back up so Bellamy witnesses everything. 

Finn places his hand just under the dress she wore to the club. He starts making small circles on her skin, but they get bigger every turn. Eventually, he lifts the hem up to her waist and starts fingering her panties. Clarke starts shifting when he slips his hand down the front of her. 

“Bellamy? I thought you didn’t want me?” The sleep seems to have worn some of the alcohol off, but she is still groggy. Then he moves his hand up her shirt and starts grabbing her breasts. He can see Clarke squirm, but he can’t do anything about it. The only thing he can feel is the pounding in his chest. 

“Ow, Bellamy. You are hurting me,” she says. 

“It’s okay, baby, I know you like it,” Finn mumbles in her ear. That’s when her eyes snap open and immediately makes eye contact with Bellamy. He thinks they have contact, but it’s hard to tell with all the tears blurring his vision. There is motion from the bed, but he still can’t see. He finally manages to blink most of them away only to find Finn laying directly on top of her. Her dress is tossed to the side and he shoves his tongue into her mouth. When he removes it to use it on a different part of her body, she tries to scream. It is quickly dampened by his hand and he watches her flinch from the pain. 

Something starts moving at his side. He feels the pins and needles sensation starting at his fingertips. He realizes that he is regaining motion in his hand and is trying to reach out to her. While keeping his hand in motion, in hopes to make the paralytic wear off faster, he never keeps his eyes off her. Tears are streaming down her face as he bites each nipple. He doesn’t even know when he took her bra off. With one hand still on her mouth, the other starts undoing his belt. 

He finally feels most of his upper body able to move. Luckily, his phone is in his pocket on the side of his newly regained motion. He pulls it out, making sure Finn doesn’t notice, and calls 911. He brings it up to his ear and hears the regular introducing line. 

“911, what is your emergency?” 

“I need police and ambulance,” he whispers so soft he is surprised the person hears him. He gives them the address and hangs up. 

Finn removes his hand from her mouth to rip off her panties, and she starts to scream again. Bellamy closes his eyes but hears the crack of Finn’s hand against her face. 

“Don’t make a sound,” he calmly tells her, “or pretty boy over there may not live to see you again.” Clarke gives a nod and looks over to Bellamy. He can see the fear in her eyes over what is about to happen. He puts his finger to his mouth in a shushing motion and she looks away. 

Bellamy can feel his whole body now, and he is thrumming with adrenaline. While Finn is fumbling with himself, he picks himself off the floor. The remnants of the drug make him unsteady at first, but it only takes a moment to control his movement. Either Finn didn’t use enough of it or it wears off faster than he realizes, but that doesn’t matter. Before Finn takes Clarke into the deepest pit of her own hell, he runs and tackles him off the bed. 

Someone’s head hits the wall because Bellamy hears, but if it was his, he doesn’t feel it. Finn buttons up his pants, apparently he can‘t fight with it all hanging out, and swings at Bellamy’s gut. He easily deflects it and returns the favor to his face. Finn’s head rocks back and blood gushes out of his nose. 

“You’re a strong one, you are,” Finn grumbles. 

“There is no way you are getting out of this one,” Bellamy tells him. Finn’s face contorts in anger and tries another punch. He grabs his arm and twists like he did before, but this time he kicks his feet out from under him. When he has Finn trapped on the floor, he takes the arm he has a hold of and yanks with all his strength. The sound of his shoulder coming out of its socket sounds like a gunshot in the dead of the night. Bellamy releases him and lets him writhe in pain. 

He turns to check on Clarke, but a hand pulls his ankle, and he tumbles to the floor. He hits his head on the bed frame and the world goes sideways. Then he feels the hand close around his throat and legs straddle him. He can hear Clarke yelling at Finn to stop. 

No. 

He is not letting Finn win. 

Once his vision straightens out, he flips them, so he is on top. Bellamy takes his leg and traps Finn’s good arm under it. He closes both hands around his throat and watches his eyes bulge out. Bellamy knows how long it takes to choke a man unconscious and not kill him. Once Finn goes limp, he releases him and gets up. 

Clarke is in the same position as she was when Bellamy rammed Finn off the bed. That also means she never covered herself back up. She was paralyzed like he was, just not because of a drug. Bellamy is careful not to stare while takes the comforter and gently lays it on top of her. She gratefully clutches the barrier between her and the world and starts sobbing. 

He doesn’t know what to do. He wants to hold her and tell her everything will be fine, but he knows it won’t be. He has no idea how long it will take for her to recover from this. 

“I called the police before I tackled him. They should be here any minute,” he tells her. 

Her only response is the hand that shoots out from under the blanket. It takes his and drags him to her side. He lays down beside her wraps his arms around her. She cries into his chest and he lets her. He doesn‘t say a word. 

Bellamy is so busy concentrating on Clarke, he doesn’t notice Finn get up from the ground. The only warning he gets is from Clarke‘s wide eyes. Finn sways on his feet and that gives Bellamy the perfect opportunity to grab the ceramic bowl off her nightstand and hit him on the temple. 

The sickening crunch of skull shattering makes both of them jump, but mostly Clarke. Bellamy is sure he is down for good this time; at least until the police gets here. 

Clarke has fresh tears streaming down her cheeks. “I am so sorry, Bellamy,” she chokes out. 

“Hey, there is nothing for you to be sorry about, you got that? You did nothing wrong in this situation. You did nothing wrong in any situation involving him. And now he will be taken away even longer for attempted murder.” 

“We thought he would be gone for a long time this last time, too! Look what happened! I never should have run from him.” 

“And do what? Let him keep hurting you?” He knows she is selfless, but he hopes she would have at least tried to get out of his grip given the chance. 

“At least he wouldn’t have hurt you,” she whispers. 

“I’m okay. I promise. It’s you I’m worried about, and don’t even try telling me you are fine.” 

“I wouldn’t dare. Not even the best liar in the world could go through that and say they are fine,” Clarke says. She sounds like she meant it as a joke, but none of her usual sarcastic humor leaves her lips. 

Bellamy holds her again like he was before Finn got up. They sit there in silence, Clarke tucked into his chest and him protecting her from any more evil in the world. Ten minutes later, the police come knocking on the door. Bellamy goes to answer it, but Clarke pulls him back in. 

“Don’t leave. Please?” 

He nods and lets the police come in the unlocked door. They are found in the bedroom and Bellamy explains everything so she doesn’t have to. The EMTs are handling Finn when the officer asks Clarke when she would be able to go to the station and officially file charges. 

“We know this is a sensitive time,” the officer says, “but sooner rather than later would be in your best interest.” 

“She isn’t going to have to file charges, officer,” the EMT in charge says. “This man is dead.” 

Bellamy’s heart stops beating as if he is as dead as Finn. “I killed him? No, I couldn’t have hit him that hard...” 

“You may not have thought you did in the heat of the moment, but this head injury was caused by a very strong hit.” 

“You have nothing to worry about, sir. I understand it was self-defense,” the officer tells him. 

The rest of the night is a blur. More details are written down and Clarke allows the officers to take pictures of her bruises for the report. Bellamy turns away for that part. 

Finally, the policemen and EMTs are gone, along with Finn’s body, and it’s just Bellamy and Clarke. 

“I can’t stay here. I can’t sleep in this room and ever feel the safe again. I am going to have to move out.” 

“I understand that, but I hope you don’t move away. You have friends here, Clarke. Friends that will miss you terribly if you go.” It may be selfish for Bellamy to beg her to stay if she doesn’t want to, but he can’t help it. He needs her in his life. 

“I’m not leaving Sanctum,” she reassures him. “But I’m not living here.” 

“While you look, you can stay with me...if you want that is. I remember us joking about how unoriginal these apartments are, so I understand if mine will bring up the same memories as this place does.” 

“It might,” she starts, “but I’m willing to try it out. Let’s go. I can’t stand to be here any longer.” 

After Clarke gets dressed, the head over to Bellamy’s. Hurricane Finn is finally over, and now all there is to do is heal. Hopefully he can help her do that. He is prepared to do anything that she needs. To give her anything she wants for as long as she wants. 

But now? All they both want is sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It might be a few days before I update again, but I hope it's not too long of a wait. Thanks for reading and I hope you are enjoying it! Comments are always appreciated ;)


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bellamy seems to be taking what happened harder than Clarke and is having a hard time getting past it.

Bellamy and Clarke ended up getting into the same position they were in before Finn showed up. Once in the apartment, she beelined to his room and climbed in his bed. Bellamy watched her while leaning on the door frame. He wanted to make sure she got comfortable before he turned in on the couch. 

“Aren’t you getting in?” she asked. 

“I, uh... can. Are you sure, though?” 

“Please get in.” He did what she said and wrapped her in his arms. He was careful not to touch any of her new bruises or generally any spot Finn touched. 

That was hours ago. 

Now Bellamy lies awake next to her with the sun shining in on them. Clarke doesn’t stir, which given the circumstances, makes sense. She deserves to sleep for a week. He breaths in her scent. He smells the faintest bit of lavender, but there is mostly sweat. She will probably want to take a shower. 

Bellamy carefully gets out of bed and walks into the kitchen. He thinks about making breakfast, but he doesn’t know how long she will be sleeping and doesn’t want it to get cold. Instead, he decides to get some of her things from her place. If she is going to be staying with him, she is going to need her things. He isn’t going to get much, just some clothes and her shower things. He is nervous about leaving her, but she is sleeping, and he will only be across the hall. 

Being as sneaky as he can be, he is out of his door and into hers in seconds. He immediately regrets going back. When he walks in, he sees himself on the ground, unable to move. He sees Finn on top of Clarke, hitting and squeezing her. He walks into the bathroom to grab her shampoo, conditioner, and toothbrush. Staring at his reflection, he closes his eyes and sighs. He is preparing for the next room he needs to enter. 

He leaves the bathroom and stands in the doorway of that godforsaken bedroom. He doesn’t see Clarke this time. Just him and Finn fighting. He can feel his heart beating faster as if he is still in action. Then they are gone. It’s just an empty room again. Bellamy goes to her closet and picks out some shirts then heads to her dressers. He grabs an empty box and throws in the shirts and adds some jeans, leggings, or whatever pants he finds. Then he thinks of her...undergarments. 

Maybe this was a bad idea. 

It’s definitely not how he thought he was going to touch her bras and panties for the first time. He feels guilty for thinking like that after what she just went through. He takes a handful of each and shoves them in the box. Having everything he came in for, he gladly leaves the apartment. 

Bellamy opens his door thinking he will find Clarke awake in the living room but thankfully doesn’t. He sets her box down and gets some water from the fridge. He is thinking about how this is going to work; Clarke living with him indefinitely. He wants her in his life. God knows he never wants her to leave, but how can she recover when she is sleeping fifty feet away from where her worst nightmare happened? Maybe she should stay at Raven’s? 

A scream rings out from the bedroom. Bellamy rushes in and sees Clarke thrashing around, like she is trying to get something, or someone, off her. Tears are soaking her cheeks when she yells, “Please, STOP!” 

He kneels beside her moving body and places one hand on her face and the other on her side. “Shh, Clarke. It’s just a nightmare.” Then her eyes burst open. “Hey there, Princess.” Her body stops moving, but her breathing is still fast. 

“Bellamy? I thought... I could feel him...” She can’t finish whatever she was planning on saying because she chokes on her sobs. That sound tears Bellamy to pieces on the inside. He feels like his heart is shattering into pieces so tiny he doesn’t know if he will be able to put them together again. 

“It’s okay, Clarke. I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere.” He picks her up, lays her in his lap, and starts gently rocking her. She responds by tucking her head into the crook of his neck. Her breaths become slower and more even. 

“I’m good, Bell. I’m fine now.” He stops rocking, but he can’t seem to let her go. He keeps her held to his chest like if she gets up, a part of him will go with. 

“Are you alright?” she asks him. 

“Of course I am. You are the one that experienced all the trauma,” he says, completely brushing off her question. He has the sense she wants to say more, so he sets her back down on the bed, despite not wanting to, and goes into the kitchen. From there, he yells in her direction, “What do you want for breakfast?” 

“I’m not hungry,” she grumbles. 

“Come on, you have to eat. The only thing you have consumed in the last twelve, hell maybe twenty-four, hours is alcohol.” 

“Fine. I will have toast. But I am going to shower first.” 

“That’s a start. The eating, not the shower.” 

After her shower, he serves her as she sits on the couch and turns on the Roman Empire series on Netflix. They sit in silence as the commentator goes on and on. He tries to concentrate on the tv, but the only thing on his mind is her body sidling up next to him and his arm around her. She is warm and the lavender he smelled earlier is much stronger now. Against his better judgement, he takes her hand. 

He doesn’t know what he is doing. He has fallen in love with her, he knows that, but he has no clue what to do about it. He knows what he wants to do. He wants to kiss her breathless and touch her so all she thinks about is him and show her that nothing will ever change how he feels about her. 

But then he thinks of Finn and what he did to her. What if he does something that scares her? Or something that reminds her of him? He would hate himself every day of heunintentionally did anything to hurt her. 

Twenty minutes of silent Netflix watching later, a light knock comes from the door. Clarke lets him get up to answers it. All their friends stride in and sit in the living room around her. Raven and Emori sit on either side of her. 

“I am so incredibly sorry you had to go through that again,” Raven says. He can tell she is trying not to cry. 

“I am glad the son of a bitch is dead,” Murphy chimes in. That hits Bellamy in the chest, since he made the kill. 

“Guys, I’m fine. Seriously.” 

“I don’t see how,” Octavia says. “Your abusive ex-boyfriend broke into your apartment, nearly killed my brother, and was probably going to do the same to you after, you know...” 

“O, really?” Bellamy huffs when he sees Clarke flinch. 

“It’s okay, Bellamy. It’s probably true, anyways,” Clarke says. “You guys wanna stick around?” 

“As long as we stop watching whatever it is you are watching,” Emori laughs. Bellamy can’t figure out how everyone is in this mood. Especially Clarke. If she can get over this, so can he. He puts on his best fake smile and sits next to Clarke when she scoots over. Emori takes control of the remote and turns Shameless on. It’s not Bellamy’s favorite, but the rest of them seem to enjoy it. 

The gang hangs there all day. Laughing, crying, crying from the laughing. Even Bellamy seems to cheer up a bit. Clarke gets up to get a glass of water and is in the kitchen when there is a small tap on the door. It’s like the person on the other side is scared to be there. Bellamy is confused but opens it all the way. A large man stands there and doesn’t say anything. Instead, he looks straight over Bellamy’s shoulder. 

SMASH 

The sound of shattering glass whips Bellamy’s head around. Clarke is standing frozen in the kitchen, eyes bulging out of her head and mouth slightly open. Murphy, Emori, Raven, and Octavia get up and make a line in front of Clarke. God, he loves their friends. They have no clue this guy is, Bellamy doesn’t even know for sure, but they still put themselves between her and him. 

“Marcus, what are you doing here?” she breathes. 

“I’m here to talk about my son.” The man looks around the group. “Finn.” 

It’s like all the oxygen gets sucked out of the room. Nobody dares to take a breath. Bellamy stands there with the door open, not sure what to do. 

“As far as I know, there isn’t much to talk about,” Murphy spits. “He was a sick bastard that deserved everything he got.” 

Finn’s dad doesn’t look anyone in the eyes when he says, “I know. So can we talk?” 

He is about to refuse, but Clarke speaks up saying, “Fine, but everyone here stays. They all know the truth about everything.” Bellamy steps to the side and lets him in. 

Marcus sits at the dining room table and rubs his face in his hands. “Clarke, I need you to know how sorry I am for Finn’s behavior.” 

“Why would you be sorry? It’s not like he was in your life for long,” she says. 

“No, but the beginning of childhood is a learning period. He learned all his shitty behavior from me and his mother. He learned that if someone didn’t do as you pleased, you make them do it. I am the reason he was that way.” 

“But I’m confused,” she begins. “He was turning around when he met me. I could tell he was holding in things he would have usually lashed out at. Was it me? Did I do something to revert him into his old self?” Bellamy hopes she doesn’t truly think that. There is no world where she has any right to blame herself for his problems. 

“That’s another reason I failed. When I met with him for the first time since he was a child, he was really upset. Not only because of what I did to him, but because I was successful in fixing my life. I became this hot shot lawyer that won almost every case I was assigned. It was that day I promised him that I would get him out of whatever trouble he got into. That I would be there for him to make up for the years that I wasn’t.” 

“Wow,” Bellamy says. “He took that very literal, didn’t he? I bet that’s when he started getting into the bar fights. Then he took it a little further and started attacking women. And you just let it slide every time?” He feels a hand on his chest pushing him back. At some point Clarke had walked through their friends and put herself between Marcus and him. 

“Stop, Bellamy. This isn’t going to help,” she whispers in his ear. 

“He has a right to be mad. You have an even greater right to it.” 

“I am mad. No, I am pissed! He ruined my life. I didn’t have any friends, I couldn’t go anywhere without him following, and the things he did to my body? It wasn’t until I got here that I felt comfortable in my own skin or able to bear another person’s touch.” She looked at Bellamy with that last part. “I was finally whole again, and then he showed up because you let it happen.” 

“What I’m wondering is how you aren’t yelling at us or suing us for killing Finn?” Raven asks. She says “us” like they were involved. 

“I grieve the loss of my boy, but if this hadn’t happened, I don’t know what would’ve become of him. I eventually would have stopped letting him get out, but prison is no place to live. With his temper, he probably would have gotten himself killed in there.” 

“I have one last question,” Clarke says. “How did you have a clean conscious every time you managed to get him out of his charges? If no one was hurt, that’s fine, not good by any means, but fine. But the rape charges? Both times I filed for domestic abuse? How did you let him go and not feel guilty?” 

“The bar fights and attempted robberies didn’t worry me. My hope was he would learn from each time he got arrested. When he started targeting women, I wasn’t told the whole story. Every time he got into that kind of trouble, he told me that the girl was blowing everything out of proportion. He told me his carefully crafted stories, and because of the guilt I had for hurting him, I believed him.” 

“So what did he tell you about me?” 

“He said you were clumsy and was always drinking. He said you would say yes to him but then act like you said no. I never met you, I didn’t know if he was telling the truth or not, so once again, I believed him. That is what I am truly sorry for.” 

“I forgive you,” Clarke whispers. 

“What??” Murphy exclaims. “Are you serious?” 

Clarke doesn’t listen to him. She keeps her eyes trained on Marcus. “I forgive you on one condition. I want you to leave Sanctum and never come back. I want to never see you in my life ever again. Got it?” 

“I can do that, Clarke. Thank you for the forgiveness even though I know I don’t deserve it.” 

“You don’t. But if I don’t forgive you, it will fester inside me and I will never be able to move past it. Finn is dead. I have nothing to worry about now. So, go and never look back.” 

Bellamy leads Marcus to the door and softly shuts it behind him. Then he walks back to Clarke and embraces her in a hug so tight he doesn’t know where he ends and she starts. When she pulls away, he takes his hands and cups her face in them. 

“That was so brave, Princess,” he tells her. 

“I am just glad that is over with. Now I truly have nothing to remind me of the past. Now I only have the future.” 

After sitting around and talking for a few more hours, their friends leave. Clarke and Bellamy are alone in the kitchen rummaging through the cupboards. At least she is getting her appetite back. 

“Maybe just order a pizza?” Bellamy suggests as he looks through the last nearly empty cabinet. Clarke sits on the counter behind him. 

“Bellamy, are you okay? You have been a little weird since the...incident.” 

He doesn’t turn around to reply. He just bows his head and says, “Weird? I already told you, I’m fine.” 

“Know that if you need to talk, you can talk to me. Anything, anytime.” He remembers him saying almost those exact words to her when she first moved in. “Look at me, please.” 

Slowly, he turns around and faces her. 

“Talk to me,” she pleads. 

“I don’t know what to say. I can’t get the numbness out of my bones. I can’t stop seeing him on top of you and me laying there just watching,” he starts walking towards her and a few tears are brimming his eyes. “And I can’t stop calling myself a murderer. I killed a man, Clarke.” 

“You did, but it wasn’t murder. He was going to kill us. It was self defense” 

“Does that give me the right to stoop to his level? To hurt another person because he is doing something I don’t like?” 

Clarke takes his face in her hands and pulls him between her knees. He rests his hands on either side of her hips. “You aren‘t listening to me, Bell. I understand that’s what it feels like. Finn always turned it around on me and made me feel like I deserved what he was doing to me. Don’t let him win with you, too. It’s hard, but you did the right thing. I know you only meant to knock him out, but sometimes it just doesn’t go the way we plan.” 

The tears in his eyes cascade over his cheeks, and he rests his head on her shoulder. She rubs his back and says, “It’s okay. It’s all over. Finn is gone, his dad is gone, and we can go back to normal.” 

Bellamy lifts his head to right beside hers, their cheeks grazing. Clarke is the one that starts pulling back to look into his eyes. Their foreheads touch, and their lips are so close he can feel the warmth of her breath. 

“I think I’m going to bed,” he whispers. 

“Oh, um, okay. I will be in after I brush my teeth.” 

Bellamy sees her disappointment, but he can’t get himself to make a move. He wants to, but he can’t get what happened out of his head. Things will get better. They will both heal, and he will finally tell her how he feels.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke confronts Bellamy about her feelings she has and the feelings she knows he has for her.

It’s been a month since Finn died and life is finally getting back to normal. Clarke is still living with him until she can land a place of her own. They get up for work, eat breakfast, and leave like they always did, just everything together. He loves every minute of it. 

This morning, though, Clarke is different. She doesn’t speak a word to him from when they get up to when they get down to their building door. When they step outside, she stops. Bellamy takes a few steps before he realizes she isn’t next to him. 

“You okay, Clarke?” he asks her when he turns and faces her. All she does is stand there and stare at him. He doesn’t move; doesn’t breathe. Next thing he knows, she takes three big strides and is right in front of his face. Then she grabs his shirt and pulls him towards her. Their mouths collide and Bellamy reflexively tenses up. She feels it and releases him. After the kiss, she won’t make eye contact with him. She heads to her car and drives away. 

_Way to go, Bellamy_. He stands there a moment before getting in his own car and heads to work. He decides that tonight he is going to tell her how he feels.

Apparently, thinking about all the ways he could talk to Clarke tonight makes the work day go way faster than usual. It reminds him of when they first met, and how she was all he could ever think about. 

When he gets home, he is glad to see Clarke’s car in the parking lot. He parks next to it and sits for a second. He tries to get his bearings but instead gets distracted by something he sees in her car. There are pictures all over her dash and hanging from the rear-view mirror. A couple are Clarke and various combinations of their friends, but most of them are of him and her. There are pictures from the club after they found out Finn was going to jail. There are a few from various get-togethers at friend’s apartments, including Clarke wiping the floor with Murphy at beer pong. Raven and Octavia must have been behind the camera for all their photos. 

There is one picture bigger than the rest and it’s on display hanging from the mirror. From all the ones he has seen, this one is by far his favorite. Him and Clarke are huddled on his couch together. They are looking at each other with loving eyes and smiles as wide as the Grand Canyon is deep. He can feel the warmth of the moment just by looking at it. In the very corner, he can see their hands are clasped together. 

That’s all it takes to kick his own ass up to his apartment. He fumbles with his keys from the excitement and bursts through the door. 

“Hey, Clarke! Can we talk?” He doesn’t realize he is speaking to an empty room until the adrenaline rush recedes. Maybe she is in the bedroom? 

He walks in and there is nothing. The bathroom is also empty. If her car is here, where did she go? He calls her cell, but it goes straight to voicemail. If he hadn’t gotten rid of Finn himself, he would have been worried about that, but why hasn’t she called him? 

He opens the fridge to grab a water and a piece of paper falls to the ground. 

**Don’t be worried. Having a girl’s night out. Might stay with Raven, idk. Don’t wait up.**

Well, that ruins his plans for the night. He takes a beer out instead of the water and plops down on the couch. It’s not that he has a problem with her going out, he only wishes she would have at least texted him. A note inside the fridge? That was odd. 

At seven, Murphy walks in his door. He invited him over because he got incredibly bored with no one to talk to. He figured he would have also been outed tonight with Emori being at the girl’s night out. 

“What were you doing while they all went out?” Bellamy asks him. 

“I was, uh,” he scratches his head and grabs a drink. “Watching a movie,” he finishes when he sits down in the chair next to the couch. He has a feeling Murphy isn’t telling him the whole truth. 

“Do you know where they went out?” 

“Nope.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yup.” 

Bellamy waits a bit. “Spill.” 

Murphy stares at him and eventually caves. He pinches the bridge of his nose and says, “They were going to go out. Raven picked Clarke up not long after she got home from work. She had even gotten home early. Raven was driving to the Dropship, Octavia and Emori were meeting them there, when she noticed Clarke’s mood. She was clearly sad and not in the party mood and when asked about it, she just said she would rather stay in.” 

“Why didn’t Raven bring her home and have everyone come over?” 

“I don’t think she wanted to be here when you got home. When they all came in my door, Clarke was talking about what happened this morning. You are a dumbass, by the way. Do you have any idea how much she cares about you?” 

Bellamy sighs and drops his head. “I know, I just froze. I have been waiting for that moment since we met and when it finally happened, I didn’t do anything.” 

“Well, at least you realize how wrong you are.” 

“I want her to know how much I care about her, too. Every time I get a chance, though, I blow it. I was planning on fixing it tonight, but I came home to a cold note.” 

Murphy raises his brows. “Cold doesn’t seem like her style.” 

“No, literally cold. I found it in the fridge.” Bellamy laughs and Murphy joins in. They watch movies and drink until 10:30. 

“I’m gonna go,” Murphy announces suddenly after looking at his phone. Bellamy doesn’t have time to ask why before the door slams shut. 

“Okay, then. Goodbye,” he says to an empty room again. 

He sits on the couch for another hour before the front door creaks open. Clarke tiptoes through the frame and locks the door behind her, still trying to be as quiet as she can. Bellamy watches her the entire time. She finally faces him on the couch, and he hears her sudden intake of breath. 

“I thought you were sleeping.” 

"Can we talk?” 

Clarke sets down her purse on the counter and plops into the same chair Murphy was in an hour ago. “Let me go first.” She doesn’t look at him, only her lap, and says, “I think I am going to move in with Raven.” 

“Wait, but--” he tries to stop her from talking, but it doesn’t work. 

“She says she has a spare room that I can use and rent would be way cheap between the two of us.” 

“Clarke, hold on--” 

“Plus, it’s closer to my job so I wouldn’t have to get up as early,” she breathes out a laugh trying to lighten the mood. 

Bellamy isn’t having it. “Clarke!” 

She finally stops talking and looks directly at him. 

“What are you talking about? I thought we had it good here?” 

“Is that all you think of this? Bellamy, I have been living here for a month. You don’t even let me pay half the rent, and I have taken over more than my fair share of the bathroom. For God’s sake, we have been sleeping in the same bed the entire time!” 

Now it’s Bellamy’s turn to look away. He has a good idea where this is going. “Please, don’t go,” he sadly grumbles. 

“Why? You can always find a new roommate, it’s not that hard.” 

“You are more than a roommate to me,” he admits. 

“Are you sure? Can you prove it?” He feels the couch shift next to him and a hand on his knee. He finally looks at her to find her facing him with eyes that are soft and full of hope. “Give me a reason to stay.” 

Bellamy turns to face her and takes her hand in his. He starts rubbing circles over her knuckles and says, “Clarke, when you kissed me this morning, it was the greatest thing I have felt in years. In my mind, I wrapped my arms around you, and we didn’t let go. Instead, we headed inside and stayed there all day with no interruptions.” 

“But that’s not how you responded.” 

“No, it’s not. That kiss is what I have been looking forward to since we met. But you were withdrawn and wouldn’t let me get near you. I figured you just wanted to be friends, so I waited until you got more comfortable around me and our friends. But then I learned about Finn and everything made sense from the clothes you wore to not letting anyone near you.” 

“Bellamy, get to the point. Please?” Her soft lip is trapped between her teeth. 

“The point is I am terrified of moving on from friends. I need you to know that I want to. I want to kiss you when we wake up in the morning and every moment we have together until we go to bed. I want you to live with me and not just until you find a different place to get away from yours across the hall. If you want to go somewhere else, I want to be right there with you. Anything you do, I want to be there supporting you. I can’t imagine life without you, Clarke.” 

“So what is stopping you?” 

Bellamy takes a breath and collects himself. “I am scared that I am going to do something that reminds you of him. I am scared of touching you somewhere that he hurt you and make you relive something from the past. I would hate myself if I ever did anything to hurt you like that.” 

Clarke removes her hand, and he thinks she is going to get up and away from him but instead feels the warmth of it on his cheek. She gives him a broad smile and, without warning, swings her leg over his lap so she is straddling him. 

“I am never going to forget what happened to me. It’s not possible. But what I can do is move on to someone caring and loving and who puts me in front of everyone else, including himself.” 

She slowly takes her shirt off and drops it on the couch beside them. She is now sitting in his lap in only her bra and jean shorts. Bellamy doesn’t look straight at her until she guides his face up to hers. 

“It’s okay,” she whispers before planting a small, soft kiss on his lips. She notices he doesn’t move, so she takes his hand again and moves it to the side that was bruised a long time ago. He goes tense, but she holds it there. “I told you about this one; when he found me looking through his phone. It was there for weeks.” Bellamy’s heart is racing from touching her, but she wants him to, so he doesn’t pull away. 

Then she moves their hands to her sternum where those scarred scratch marks are. “This is where his nails dug deep enough to draw blood when I wasn’t ‘reacting properly’ during sex.” 

Tears are building up in both of their eyes when she moves their hands to her final major injury. Sliding their fingers down her exposed spine, she settles on a spot right above the start of her shorts. “Here is where he shoved me so hard into the counter that I had to go to the hospital because I couldn’t feel my foot. I regained feeling in a couple hours, but I feared that I wouldn’t be able to walk normally again.” 

“Why are you having me touch you like this?” he asks softly. 

“Because I want you to know that your touch is, and never will be, like his. His was always harsh and full of anger. Yours has always been gentle and full of care. His presence alone made me scared which part of my body I would have to hide next. With you, I don’t have to worry about anything because you always put me and my feelings first. I am proving that you have no reason to be scared anymore.” 

She lets go of his hand, but for once, he keeps it on her body. He slides it from her spine to her hip and gently places his other hand on her other side. His eyes never leave hers so he can gauge how she reacts. He brings his forehead to hers, and before he loses his nerve, he kisses her like he has been wanting to for months. 

Clarke finally lets herself put all her weight on him and he responds by bringing her closer. In one swift, sexy motion, Bellamy’s shirt joins hers on the couch. She runs her fingers over his abs and chest before landing in his mess of curls on his head. 

Bellamy breaks their intense kiss to ask, “Are you sure this is okay?” 

Clarke smiles at him and runs her thumb across his cheek. “You have to trust that I will tell you if I am uncomfortable. I promise, this is way better than okay.” 

Bellamy moves in for her lips again and lifts them off the couch. They are impossibly close. Before he gets them to their room, she unsnaps her bra. It hangs loose until Bellamy smoothly lays her down and she tosses it away. He hovers over her and takes her all in. 

“You are beautiful,” he breathes. He kisses her starting on the lips then trails them down her throat and between her breasts until he gets to her shorts. He gives her a seductive grin and skips to the inside of her thighs. He kisses both sides and goes back up before stopping at the hem. Clarke’s body arches off the bed waiting for his next move. 

“Will you just take them off, please!” He laughs and does what he is told, but slowly. He lets his hands touch every inch of her until all traces of clothes are gone. He settles right between her legs and grips her legs. He can hear Clarke’s heavy breathing in anticipation. He dives in. 

At the first flick of his tongue, Clarke moans and her hips shudder. He has to keep a tight hold to keep her in place. As his tongue goes deeper, he feels her hand in his hair pushing him in. Next are his fingers. He keeps his mouth on her, but slowly inserts his index finger. In and out he goes, never getting any faster. Clarke’s toes curl against his back so he puts in another finger. 

“Wait, Bell.” He immediately stops and backs away. Her legs fall against the bed as he stares at her naked body. Instead of getting on top of her, he climbs in the bed next to her. 

“Everything all right, Princess? Should we stop?” 

“Oh, hell no. I just wanted to do this,” she says as she lays him on his back and straddles him again. She doesn’t wait long before grabbing the waistband of both his sweatpants and underwear. She gives one big pull and his remaining clothes are gone, too. She stares a moment before wrapping her lips around him. 

Now it’s Bellamy’s turn to moan and groan. He clenches the sheets in his hands as she works on him. The sounds she is making around him almost sends him over the edge. 

When she is done, she climbs on top of him and he asks, “Ready for this?” 

“I’ve been ready.” 

Bellamy can’t wait any longer. He slides inside her and basks in the gasp she gives. She leans back and moves up and down slowly. Her hands are on his abdomen and his are clenching her hips. He watches her breasts bounce with her movements and he can’t keep his eyes off her. 

Suddenly, and carefully, he flips them over to be on top. Her legs hook around his waist, and he never stops moving. He has his arms under her now and one hand gripping each shoulder. He buries his face in her neck and feels the vibration of her moans. 

Her hands are on his waist trying to get him to move faster. After a moment, he obliges and picks up the pace. She makes little squealing sounds like she is trying to hold in a scream. If the walls weren’t so thin, he would make her scream. He can feel himself about to let loose, so he pulls out. They both release at the same time and then lay there next to each other panting. 

Clarke rolls into his arms and snuggles into his chest. Their sweaty bodies melt into each other and they stay quiet for a few minutes. 

“So, I guess I have the balls to ask you if you want to be my girlfriend now,” he grumbles in a husky voice. 

“You definitely have the balls,” she retorts. They burst out laughing start locking lips again. “But it’s a yes in case you didn’t know.” 

“And will you stay and officially live with me?” 

“Of course, I will.” They stay in that position all night. Next thing they know, it’s time to get ready for work. After the night’s activity, they decide they each need a shower. However, there isn’t enough time to take separate ones, so they are forced to get in together. That shower takes particularly longer than any other shower Bellamy has ever had. 

When they are ready to get in their cars, they find it hard to split ways. They eventually give one last kiss and head to work. Bellamy can’t stop thinking about last night. He was worried about nothing, as usual. It was the best night he has had in such a long time. The heart that was shattered from how she was being treated is finally whole again. 

Bellamy comes home to his girlfriend (he loves that word) sitting on the couch. She is reading one of his books about the Greek gods, and when she looks up to see him in the door, she gives him a warm smile. 

“Don’t get too comfortable,” she says. “We are going to Raven’s. She invited us and I think it’s a good time to let everyone in on our new life updates.” 

“Fine by me.” He walks over and gives the crown of her head a light kiss before changing clothes. Twenty minutes later, they arrive at Raven’s. 

Standing outside of her door Bellamy takes her hand and kisses her cheek. “Ready?” 

“Always,” she responds. They walk in the door with their hands glued together. Nobody pays much attention to them at first, but when they don’t say anything Octavia turns to them to say something. 

Instead, her eyes go wide and she yells, “I KNEW YOU TWO COULD DO IT!” Everyone is looking now and starts clapping. Bellamy and Clarke’s smiles are wide and toothy. 

“It’s about damn time,” Murphy laughs. 

The party goes on from there and lasts well into the morning. Bellamy has the girl of his dreams by his side and is surrounded by friends and family. There is nothing in this world he could want more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this! The last chapter should be up tomorrow if everything goes to plan. It's only going to be a short epilogue, but it will bring the happy ending everyone wants. Comments appreciated <3 <3 <3 and thanks for reading!!


	8. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's two years later and Clarke is acting suspicious.

Bellamy wakes up to an empty bed, which is odd because he is usually the early bird of the relationship. It’s been two years since they officially became a couple and not once has she ever been up before him. He can hear quiet voices out in the living room, but he doesn’t know what they are saying. He rubs the sleep from his eyes and slips on some loose sweatpants before heading to the kitchen. When he walks out of their room, he finds Murphy and Clarke sitting on the couch looking at her laptop. 

Murphy leans close and whispers into Clarke’s ear. He must have said something funny because she covers her mouth to muffle her laughter. Bellamy feels a pang in his chest. He can’t be jealous, not after this long. And definitely no of Murphy. Besides, Clarke would never do anything like this to him. To anyone. He walks to get a coffee mug and purposefully makes audible noises.. As soon as they notice he is there, Clarke quickly closes her laptop and Murphy scoots away from her. 

“Mornin’ sunshine,” she says to him. She walks up to him and pecks him on the cheek. As she starts to walk away, he takes her hand and pulls her back towards him. He leans down and kisses the smile that has spread on her face. 

“Morning.” He glances over to Murphy who looks like he would rather be anywhere else right now. “What’s the cockroach doing out of bed so early for?” 

“Leaving. That is exactly what I’m doing,” he fires and sprints out the door. 

“That was weird,” Bellamy says. He expects Clarke to agree, but she is concentrating very hard on the stream of coffee coming from the Keurig. “What do you say we go to see a movie tonight? I don’t care what, let’s just go out. And maybe go to our favorite ice cream shop?” 

“That...sounds nice, but I have plans. Rain check?” She secures the lid on her travel mug, gives his hand a squeeze, and heads out the door at nearly the same pace Murphy did. 

“What the hell just happened,” he mutters to himself. He shrugs and heads to work. 

The day goes by long and slow, but Bellamy finally gets home. He tosses his keys onto the counter and plops into the soft cushions of his couch. He thinks back to this morning, and he realizes that Clarke didn’t say who she had plans with. He is getting worked up over nothing, but he can’t stop thinking about it. 

A couple hours pass by and he is wondering where Clarke is. He expected her to come home to change out of her work clothes before heading wherever she was heading tonight. When another hour passes, he gets worried and decides to text her. 

**Thought you would be home after work before heading out. You aren’t here, so I got nervous. Everything okay?**

He stares at his screen for what seems like the whole night, but twenty minutes later, he receives an answer. 

**Plans changed. Meet us at Raven’s instead.**

Us? Were all of his friends going to go out without him? Bellamy changes into nicer clothes, puts his most valuable object in his pocket, and stalks out of the apartment. 

When he gets outside Raven’s door, he doesn’t hear a sound. No loud music testing the neighbor’s patience, no TV, not even any voices come through. He looks at his phone again to make sure he went to the right place. Maybe they are just really into a...card game? A silent card game? He slowly opens the door and finds an empty room. 

He is so confused. “Hello?” he calls. Maybe they... he doesn’t even know what to think. He is going to stay here until they decide to show up, though. They are all ruining what was supposed to be a perfect night with his perfect girlfriend. 

He rounds the corner into the kitchen to grab a drink and his head almost hits the ceiling from the sudden noise. 

“SURPRISE!” Everyone screams at him. Murphy, Emori, Octavia, Raven, and most importantly, Clarke, stand there grinning at what he imagines is the dumbest look he has on his face. 

“Happy birthday, Bell,” Clarke says and kisses him. Her lips are soft and she tastes sweet, like cotton candy. That makes sense when he looks to the left and finds a home-made cotton candy maker on the dining table. “And also, happy anniversary,” she whispers so only he hears. 

“It’s not my birthday,” he says. It truly isn’t. 

“You can’t have a surprise birthday party on your birthday, dumbass,” Murphy chimes in. 

“Totally ruins it, big brother,” Octavia adds. 

“I love you, Bellamy,” Clarke says. Her eyes are bright blue, and he can’t imagine if he never got to look at them again. He runs his thumb across her cheek, and she leans into it. It feels as if his front left pocket is filling with lead. It’s now or never. 

“I was going to wait until we were alone to do this but surrounded by friends and family seems like just as good of time,” Bellamy starts. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small velvet box. In one motion, he takes her hand and gets down on his knee. Him and Clarke never break eye contact, even when the girls shriek in the background. “I had a plan to take you out for our anniversary tonight, but as you can see, things went a little differently.” 

She covers her mouth with her free hand and mutters, “Oh, Bellamy, I’m sorry.” 

“Hey, don’t. It’s okay, everything worked out. My life hasn’t been the same since you came into it. I have experienced every emotion known to man since being with you and it has made me feel more alive than anything ever has. We have been through a lot, you and I, and I would really hope you continue to go through life with me. Clarke Griffin, will you marry me?” 

The tears that have been building up cascade down her cheeks. “Of course I will, Bellamy. There is nothing I would rather do.” Bellamy lifts himself off the ground and Clarke’s lips crash against his own. His heart swells so much that he doesn’t think his chest will be able to contain it any longer. He gracefully slides the diamond ring on her small finger. 

The rest of the night goes without a hitch. There are games, drinks, a movie, drinks, and drinking games. Everyone parties hard enough that no one really has the ability to drive home. He opens all of his gifts and Clarke explains that’s why Murphy was over this morning. 

“I wanted to make sure I got you the best gift possible, and he has known you for a lot longer than me. But I guess I didn’t need him after all because he was completely useless.” she tells him. Murphy flips her off from across the room. Bellamy opens hers and pulls out The Greek Myths by Robert Graves. 

“I love it, and I love you,” he says with a kiss on the cheek. 

They all crash in the living room, even Raven doesn’t make it to her bed. Bellamy and Clarke pass out on the couch, her on top of him. He wakes up the next morning and finds her head resting on his chest. He thinks back to last night. 

_She said yes._

He is marrying his best friend, and he feels like the luckiest man on the planet. He kisses the top of her head and falls back to sleep, peaceful and full of bliss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it! This was a wild ride and maybe I will write another multi-chapter sometime. I will take most requests on tumblr ( bellarkegriffin-blake ) if you want something specific and try my best to complete it. Anyways, thanks for reading and I hope it was enjoyable!

**Author's Note:**

> I have no idea what prompted me to write this. It may have been a Bellarke dream I had recently, but it was nowhere to the detail I am writing this in right now. I hope you like it! There will be more coming soon!


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